Train Hard, Race Easy

From recently reading Bradley Wiggins autobiography i took away a clear message. The harder your train, the easier you race. He openly stated many times sitting in the peloton was much easier than training. And the harder he trained, the easier therefore he raced. This is what i am currently aiming for and feel it is a good system to work with.

I am now back at home in Scotland for the summer months and i am continuing my training. Fortunately there are slightly less steep climbs around Angus than Devon and so i can cycle harder on the bike and feel more like i am training at triathlon race pace. There is a useful local swimming pool which also has a small gym so i am able to use the treadmill spinning bike and pool all in one session. I have also begun doing some track training. After my last event i felt i needed to improve my running and so i have been doing a mixture of sprints and other sessions on the school track.

My goals for the minute are not too loose form or fitness and train hard. It's hard at home to keep training so hard as i don't have anyone to cycle with at the minute. Long cycles into a headwind can be at times soul destroying. Fortunately a friend and fellow triathlete Gary Milne is home for a few days and training for Iron Man, i look forward to sessions with him.

I have two more events before i pause competing for the summer months to do some travelling.
I will be competing on:
June 16th The Bruce Triathlon (Sprint)
June 9th Knockburn Triathlon (Sprint)

I am really excited about these events, as of yet i have not done a sprint triathlon and they are situated in some great scenery, the swims are open water and i am getting used to open water swimming and find it very enjoyable. I also look forward to competing in Scotland where hopefully my parents will be able to come and support.

For now i'm going to keep training hard, keep my focus and continue to stick to my routines. The year so far is going great and i feel i am learning a lot and look forward to competing again.

Thanks for reading and the support so far.

(Picture from my first ride back at home)
(And an early evening session at the track)

Marazion Middle Distance.

Marazion Middle Distance. 19th May
Swim cancelled due to Sea temperatures (Run, cycle, Run event)
First run. 4km (15:24)
Bike. 70km (2:29)
Second run. 19km.(1:39)

Finish time, 4:09
Position 9th overall 6th in Category

My second race of the season and second competitive triathlon was Marazion middle distance. This was going to be the toughest event i had ever competed in and has been what my training has focused on so far. From the start of the year i had been very nervous about the distances especially the 19km run, a distance which i had never ran previously to the event.

Unfortunately a week before the event the 1900m planned swim was cancelled due to the rules and the water being too cold! However it was swiftly replaced with a 4km run. I was unsure of this but it seemed to suit me on the day.

On arrival at the race i became rather nervous and felt almost embarrassed  i was the only one without all the fancy kit and the only bike sitting in transition that was not a triathlon specific or TT bike. This threw my head a bit and put some doubt in my mind. However i just tried to think about my own race and how hard i had been training. It seems silly but things like that can throw me.

The run started as a mass run, everyone starting on the line. Immediately a few people shot off i however just let them go and set my own pace with 2 other guys, however they dropped on the first very steep hill. I then just ran alone at a strong pace and was quick into transition.

Once on the bike i was feeling strong, as there wasn't a cold sea swim my muscles were warm and i was dry this felt good and meant i pushed the pace a bit harder. The bike course was relatively flat with a few very steep descents and also a couple of steep ascents. At the start of the bike course i was drawn into a small battle with another guy who would attack then drop back and so on, i didnt feel like this was a problem so just upped the pace and held him. On the first steep descent i was a bit worried, someone had taken a big fall and was off his bike on the ground. I am at the best of times not the most confident descender so this threw me a bit. It meant people would overtake me on downhills however i would quite easily take over on the uphills. A stronger point of mine is climbing. I felt in control in the cycle and my bike stayed strong, i just got down on my TT bars, had a couple of carb gells (Torq) and dug deep. My average speed was 31.3km/h a pace i was comfortable with and one which i pushed harder on the flats.

Into T2 my legs were starting to hurt and my feet cold (race began at a cold 7am) I quickly changed shoes and grabbed a drink which i then threw away later (something i regretted). The run was a very tough course. It starts on a tough climb and then the rest is all uphill downhill and very long straight roads. It was a serious mind game and i had to control my thoughts and focus. I just set a steady pace i could run on and dug deep. I overtook a couple of people on the run and also had a couple of people overtake me, i would try and hold them but in the end drop back, i knew 18km was a long run so had to control it. Once i was on the second lap i was on my own, no one in front or behind that i could see. I sat taller and ran a little quicker. With about 4km to go i spotted someone in front and set my goal to beat them. With 2km to go i overtook and then went for the the final stretch. I was definitely hurting by this point. My thighs burned and calves were stiff but i knew i was close to the finish.

Crossing the line was a sense of relief and achievement  I had completed my first major goal of the year and even better i had finished 9th. Top ten was never in my goals but truly pleasing. It made my worries of other peoples kit etc all seem rather stupid. At the end of the day it is about how much work the individual puts in and how hard he pushes on the day.

I would once again like to thank Will Furby for driving me to the race and the support he gave me on the day.

St Austell Super Sprint.

St Austell Super Sprint. 12th May.
Swim 400m (sea swim)
Cycle 10km
Run 2.5km

Finish time. 40:20
Position. 3rd overall

My First race of the season was St Austell Super Sprint. It included the above distances and was a very fast frantic race. I was in the second wave for the swim and this was my first sea swim in a very cold 11 degrees. The swim started strong when i was sitting fourth in my group and feeling quite strong not letting the cold effect me, Once passing the first buoy i pushed up to sit third and from there i pushed harder feeling quite strong and emerged from the water second in the wave.

My transition felt fast and quick as my new aqua sphere wetsuit easily kicked off. I then sat comfortably onto the bike dropped into the tri bars and pushed on for the course. The course consisted of mainly a flat ride with false hills. The bike ran smoothly and my gears which had previous been an issue in training were completely fixed and smooth. My legs felt cold from the sea swim but i knew i just had to push on.

Into transition 2 and i was feeling good, i switched shoes and began the run course. Unfortunately half of the run was on sand, this was difficult to set a pace on however everyone would have the same problem. The run course was short and fast and so i made sure i increased my pace and pushed as hard as i could.

The finish of the race felt strong. I had no idea where i would come as i was in the second wave and i just ran my own race. However to find out i finished 3rd was a huge surprise but also an incredible moment. Yes it was only a super sprint and early in the season but i felt like training had been working and it was my first competitive triathlon (i have previously competed in one novice back in 2010). It was a good way to start the season and a boost on my confidence.

I would like to thank my good friend Will Furby for driving me to the race and supporting me.

Beginning.

My name is Andrew Woodroffe.
19 Years old
Second Year of Surf Science and Technology at Plymouth University
My Home is Forfar Scotland.

This year i have finally found the sport i am going to completely pursue, train hard for and compete. Triathlon. My previous sporting background includes rugby and rowing but i believe triathlon is now where i could find competitive results and i find my fitness and body shape is suited for the sport.

Since the beginning of my second year at university i was on my road bike more than i ever had been, and i had begun swimming again and running much more than i used too. This led me to a decision to begin after winter to fully engage in triathlon training and this Summer compete competitively for the first time. Since the beginning of this year i have been carrying out a 6 day week training plan devised by triathlon coach Paul Penrose. It involves various swim sets, long hard sessions on the bike and fartlek running amongst many other training concepts.

My aims for this year are purely to find my ideal distance. Compete in a few different triathlons and find my distance i am most competitive in, from sprint to Olympic or even half iron man. I will be competing in events in the South west in May of this year, in June i will compete at home in Scotland and after the summer months i will again compete in the south west in September and October.

In this blog i plan to report on my progress, training, events and anything else fitness or triathlon related.

Thanks for reading.