British Championships.

After returning home from Switzerland i had a massive come down and suddenly became very unwell. For the first week back at home i was struggling to leave bed, keep my eyes open and was constantly in a dangerous state of dehydration. There was no motivation to train or do anything other than a very easy jog. When i tried to train i would feel sick and completely wiped out. I was a bit silly in the heat after the race with a long ride and believe i flushed my system of essential minerals and this led to me feeling this bad.

This sickness continued for two weeks and training was minimal and i was feeling nothing like i was pre Geneva and was worried i was almost completely burnt out. However with British championships coming up decisions were being made. To race, to rest or to take some time out. As you may know i am a little stubborn so i decided to try and train and that i would try and race. I ignored a lot of advice from people a lot smarter than me but i suppose it was always my decision.

So a couple of weekends ago i turned up at Liverpool, not feeling 100% at all and to race the British Championships for the second year.

Finish time - 2:02
1500m swim - 22:11
40km bike - 1:01
10km run  - 33:23
Position - 4th in AG 20th overall

The swim start was fast and pretty hectic from the beginning and i was struggling from the start. I felt very tired as soon as i started swinging my arms and just didn't feel very fit in the water, Im not sure if this was the sickness or the lack of training but the swim just felt a struggle. I came out the water later than i would have hoped and just prayed i had something for the bike and run.

Out onto the flat fast 4 lap bike course i was immediately flying, the legs just felt fantastic and like they were rested and ready to go. I was pretty surprised but just put the head down and enjoyed the feeling! I had a guy near me on the whole bike who i knew was a strong cyclist so my goal was to always keep ahead of him and just keep the power high. Occasionally he would get ahead but i pulled him back and just kept on the front hammering the power. I knew i was having a very strong bike and was going beyond my limit but after the weeks i had i wanted to give the race everything and really see what i could do. Once again there were a few instances of people sitting right on my wheel and drafting. Its becoming a bit of an issue now and if im burying myself to sit at 300watts and they are tucked in it is a joke.

Onto the run and i was feeling tired but good, if the bike had been much longer i would have blown up but i was ready to go on the run. I knew the course from last year and just set out the run as hard as possible, my parents and sister were being incredible with the support and i felt really strong on the run. I caught a few more guys and really pushed to finish as high as i could. With it being a 2 lap run i tried to negative split the second lap and leave everything out there.

I crossed the line 4th in age group and quite honestly couldn't believe it! After having such a horrific couple of weeks and not feeling up for the race this was a massive result, 10 spaces higher than last year. It is a shame though as i really think if I was at my fittest i would have made that podium, maybe a better swim would have put me there. But i can't dwell on that for me it was a massive result and the lift i needed after a post Geneva comedown!

So since the British Champs i have been preparing for this weekend which is the Scottish middle Distance champs in Aberfeldy. It's going to be a real test for me to see how i perform over the longer distance as this could be something i may focus more on next year. Training has been up and down but this week seems to be getting better. Im really motivated for this race and have nothing to loose so come Sunday i'll be a man on a mission.

Thanks for reading and all the support as ever.

European Championships write up!

European Championships July 12th Geneva.

Finish time: 2:02:48

1500m swim - 22:50

40km bike - 1:00

10km run - 36:01

So it's about time i should really give a race report of my latest events! Back in July i flew over to Switzerland to compete in my first European Championships. I arrived a few days before the race for enough time to get used to the heat, get some training in in the mountains and enjoy the atmosphere.

Race day came around soon enough and i was feeling ready to go out there and get the work done. I had scoped out the course a couple of times and knew the bike course would suit me with two pretty steep hills and the rest very flat and fast.

On raceday i was up at 5am to head to transition and set up, it was a strange feeling of nerves, excitement and sheer exhaustion. As the sun came up i got everything ready and did my usual 10 minute jog warm up before heading to the race start. At this point the nerves were really hitting hard, fortunately i had my parents there to keep me calm and bring a smile to things.

And then we were off. A slight run in from the beach into the lake and the race had begun. I don't have much to say about the swim, it was fine there was no fighting as the lake was so wide and i just got my head down and swam as hard as i could. The swim was an A-B which felt quite long and also against current so it did feel a little longer than usual but sighting with the sun rising on Mont Blanc and with the water a perfect temperature it was a fine swim.

Once i was out the water it was into the massive transition to find my bike and get to work. After some chats with my coach and training partner Fin the plan on the bike was to just go all out, give it everything on the flat and the climb and just constantly keep the power on. The Bike was two 20km loops with a short steep climb and the rest a flat fast effort around lake Geneva. As soon as i was into the bike i was feeling good, the speed was high and i was hitting good numbers,  i just focused on pushing hard and catching more guys. As the course was laps i was never sure of where i was position wise but i knew i was on for a good ride and the incredible crowd was pushing me hard. There was a fair amount of drafting going on the course especially by a small group of British guys. I'm not going to dwell on it but if you can't ride a hard 40km by yourself then why turn up to the big races? I made sure the whole course i was off to the side and wasn't near anyone.

Off the bike in an hour i knew i was on for a good race, the legs were there the heat was rising and i felt ready to run. The run course wasn't great if im honest. It was a load of small laps that were bendy with small hills and tight corners. A nice course but not great for holding speed at all! However i pushed on and tried to use my run as much as possible catching guys and holding anyone off. I must say the crowd was amazing, the shouts and screams of my name as i ran through was seriously inspiring and made me push even harder.

After a hard push to the final 1km with guys still in my sights i crossed the line 11th! A massive result for me and just as high as i had hoped for. It was a shame to be so close to the top 10 but it was a very competitive, close race and to be up there felt incredible. Another year fitter and stronger and i think i would be higher up again.

I left Geneva in a very happy place. I had a result i was very happy with and had worked hard for and i couldn't have done anything better in the race. Everything went well and that doesn't happen much so to have that was a true reflection of my performance.

Thank you to the Simmond Family for the kind hospitality in Geneva and to my parents for the incredible support!