Portcolom 111 triathlon 2016

10th April 2016
Swim 1000m- 15:21
Bike 100km - 3:06:58
Run 10.5km - 38:23
16th overall
1st Under 23
So after what has felt like a very long winter it was time for me to fly out to Mallorca from my season opener, triathlon Portocolom. A really special race and one i started 2015 with also. A 1km swim, 100km bike and 10km run. Very different distances to normal races and a great way to test the legs.

Coming to Mallorca i didn't feel that ready to race, training had been going quite well and things were looking good but i was worried i hadn't done enough work on the bike over longer distances. Something that can be hard to find time for.

However after a couple of days of training in my old hometown of Colonia Sant Jordi at the Best centre with my training partner Fin i was on the start line. From last year i knew the bike was won or lost essentially on the bike. The swim still matters of course and as does the run but really after the first lap of the bike most guys end up finishing in that position.

I had a pretty awful swim start, in a typical Spanish fashion the race just started without any warning and i was caught out. For the first minute i was barely swimming just trying to find some water. I just kept calm and got my head down. Once out of the mess i begun to have a really solid swim, i was streaming past people (not usual for me!) and i found some good feet to sit on - Thanks Fin!. I just built the swim from start to finish and came out of the water leading the main chase pack of age groupers.

Onto the bike i knew i just had to start a bit harder than i wanted. I wanted to get into a rhthm quick and push the legs. Despite throwing up some sea water i soon found my legs and begun to settle into the 50km loop. The course is pretty damn hilly, not just the 5km climb but its all fairly rolling and you can't really sit at a power its more like an interval session. Or thats how i raced anyway.

After one lap i knew i was going strong, the numbers were looking good and i felt fresh, i struggled to find comfort in the flat open road section and lost my mind a little but onto the second lap i stepped it up a gear. Once your onto the second lap its a lonely race - it spreads out massively and you feel almost on your own. This is when i had to get my focus on and really step it up. Coming off the bike i was happy to have ridden 6minutes quicker than last year and negative split the second lap. A good sign!

Onto the run and i felt pretty slow. The first 1km just was a real struggle to get going, im usually pretty fast over the first k's but it just didn't happen then. Once i got through 3k the legs began to loosen up and from then to the finish i was just getting faster and faster, a good sign for my longer races. I knew i had given it my all and raced well when crossing the line.

I finished winning my age group and 16th overall. Funnily enough the exact same position as last year, a step up the age group podium and with the exact same run time!

To start my season like this got rid of a lot of the doubt i had had previously and i was super stoked to go quicker than last year.

It was great to be able to race with Finlay and having him in Mallorca kept me pretty relaxed. The next day my bags were packed and it was off to camp with Tri Scotland!

Big thanks as always to Gamma Transport Division and Graeme Stewart Coaching!

2016. Let's get it started.

March. I'm never sure if I like March or not. I think in most triathletes calendars it marks a pretty definite time. Even with the snow and ice on todays ride it's safe to say race season is fast approaching and March is always the first sign of that.


Triathlon can be pretty strange, we spend almost 8 months or so purely training, no races in sight and you can almost forget why you drag yourself out of bed every morning or head out riding in the wet and cold. But it is to race, to be fitter and stronger this year than you ever were and to face the new challenges the next season will create. To achieve those goals you set yourself in September, on a high from the end of the season and with big hopes for the next year.


So that's why im writing this blog today. To give you an insight into what this year will look like for me, and what's been keeping me going through a rather shocking winter here in Scotland. My aims have taken a few twists and turns and I spent a lot of weeks maybe months deciding on what I want to achieve and race.


After last season I was always leaning towards the half ironman (70.3) distance, I had raced a couple of longer events last year and I did pretty well and always felt good over the longer run. But at the same time I love a fast hard Olympic race and really wanted to World championships of which I have qualified for.


So the decision was made to test the waters in 70.3 racing along with targeting the Worlds and Scottish championships.


I'll begin my season on April 10th in Mallorca again with Portocolom triathlon, the 1km swim 100km bike 10km run race which I did last year. A real form finder and an incredible race to begin the year. From there it will be onto Furtaventura to give the Challenge half a go there. After that my schedule looks something like :


Fuertaventura 70.3
Bilbao 70.3
Staffordshire70.3
Exmoore 70.3
Scottish Sprint Champs
Aberfeldy Scottish middle distance champs
Scottish Olympic distance champs
World Championships Olympic distance in Mexico.


They will be my big races this season, the ones I hope to target and do well in. Of course the 70.3 world is still relatively foreign to me but I feel if I approach these races with the same mindset and racing style I have done to Olympics and Sprints I could race well.


I'm not going to chat about how my training is going or what else I have been up too but I feel I am in a good place but still have some solid work to do before im race fit. I will also try and do a half marathon this month and the Scottish Duathlon champs to find some form and brush off the winter cobwebs.


I'm hoping for a big 2016 and appreciate the support and following of my journey into my next season.


A few shots from winter!