Reality check

The plan has changed quite a lot lately. I have a new job, started two months ago, and it takes a lot of mental energy. It's an amazing role, I love it, but I'd forgotten how it felt to be really pushed at work and have to actually think hard. And how much that takes out of you. I was getting more and more tired, and something had to give.

Removing as much pressure as I can

Swimming was the first casualty - and being allergic to whatever they put in the pool near work didn't help much. Long sessions were the next. I signed up to The Tri Life's 12 week plan for Wales Ironman - the sessions during the week went well, but come the weekend I simply didn't want to spend 5+ hours cycling on Saturday, and hours running and swimming on Sunday. So I followed my own advice - if you're not enjoying the training and it's putting you under unnecessary self-inflicted pressure - then stop doing it. So I stopped doing it.

Next I took a long look at the races I was doing. I just didn't want to be getting up at 3am to drive somewhere to race right now, I didn't want the pressure of knowing my bike wasn't perfect and needed some work but day after day passed without me getting round to it and it was making me more and more stressed, and I didn't want the pressure of being out on the course thinking "I haven't done enough training". So I pulled out of a lot of events, viewing it as a positive decision. It was worth it in part just to get a good lie-in!

Smashing out a 10s max effort sprint on the Air bike - 10 seconds has never felt so long

Since then I'm freewheeling - hitting The Athletic Edge gym twice per week like clockwork - that's never felt like a chore, and then just running and cycling as I feel like it. And there's now so much less pressure on me, I feel I have the mental energy to get up on Saturday morning, get on my bike, and cycle to parkrun. This is great, I love parkrun, and was pressuring myself even more for missing them week after week.

I pulled out of the Human Race swim series events I was entered into (Windsor, Hampton Court and Marlow), and I skipped the London Triathlon and Ride 100. The biggest decision was to pull out of Ironman Wales though - there's no way I can wing it round a full Ironman without some good training under my belt.

I didn't pull out of everything though...

8th June - Blenheim Triathlon

Mrs always has Blenheim on the calendar - this year I joined her. I've done it before, a few years ago, so I knew what I was in for. We were off Sunday morning in a mixed sprint wave.

Once again, "cat" was a mandatory item in the kit list

I swam with measured effort, just about held my line. The run up from the lake to transition is a good couple of hundred metres, mostly uphill.

I was planning to go hell for leather on the bike, so I pushed hard from the first pedal revolution. I flew past people all round my three laps, staying on the tri-bars as much as I could.

Legs took a while to get going on the run, but I made as much use of the downhills as I could (no one ever pushes down hill!) and flew past people. Normally I get streams of people overtaking me in the run, but my performance was better this time (or the competition was weaker!). I pulled out a hard run down the final straight to finish in 1:27:07.

A pint of Erdinger Alkoholfrei at the end - lovely stuff

Compared to last time I raced the event:

I took 8 minutes off 2011's time. My cycling was strong in 2011 so I'm pleased to have knocked almost a minute per lap off that performance.

15th June - Ironman 70.3 UK

Mrs and I went down to Exmoor a few weeks before race weekend. She had already decided not to compete, focussing on ultra marathon running instead. We had a terrible training weekend - it was freezing cold and we suffered torrential rain. We managed two laps of the bike course, one Saturday and one Sunday, but I had to do it all on my TT bike (the very first thing that happened was I snapped my seat clamp bolt on my road bike - thankfully I'd brought both bikes!). We should learn that these "training weekends" never work out - I'm not sure why, maybe we don't prepare well enough, or aren't disciplined enough when we get there. Maybe we're just tired from the day job during the week.

Emergency crank swap to bring the TT bike into play... Good job I brought the toolbox

Race weekend came around though, and the weather was much better. My performance was quite poor. I swam well (felt strong, good lines, avoided too many fights) but not very fast. The bike was hard work - I benefitted from the training weekend in that I knew you hardly have to touch the brakes (appearances can be deceptive - there are some big downs but only one or two have corners at the bottom).

Nice piece of metal for the effort

The run was disastrous. Right from the start I couldn't get my legs turned over. Lack of structured training meant very few brick runs so my legs just weren't up for running after that long in the saddle. Lots of walking happened. Got a nice medal for it though, even if it did take forever for me to finally get round in 6:48:35.

Nearly two minutes down in the swim, twelve on the bike, and a massive twenty one slower in the run! Not my finest hour or seven. Let's move on...

11th to 13th July - The Long Course Weekend

I've known about the Long Course Weekend for a few years - it's a three-day event with The Wales Swim on Friday night, The Wales Sportive on Saturday, and then The Wales Marathon on Sunday. It's the same swim and bike course as Ironman Wales, but thankfully a much more interesting one-lap marathon course.

I went down during the day Friday, Mrs was joining me on Saturday. In short, I rocked the swim. I have no idea how I went so fast, but I completed the 3.8km course (which I measured at 4.00km) in 1:02 - taking 7 minutes off my time from Ironman Wales in 2012. Favourable conditions, a bit more open water experience, no freaking out, or a very helpful tide - I don't know what the reason for that performance was, but I'll take it! Probably my lifetime best time for an Ironman distance swim.

The sportive was horrible from start to finish. It was drizzling when I approached the queue for the start, then we were held for ages as the top 20 long course weekend contenders went off one by one (there's a competition to be fastest over the three days). It then rained for the first 20 miles. Drizzled for the next 20. Hazy mist with outbreaks of rain for the mid-section of 60 miles. And then good old rain for the last 18 miles. 118 damp miles completed. Bike a rusty wreck, me an aching wreck. Much slower than in the Wales Ironman race too, but I was doing it on my road bike - sportives don't normally allow time trial bikes (though as I learned afterwards, this one did...).

The medals from each event stacked together, with a front one for completing all three

But it wasn't all for nothing - I was trying for the first time a real "mind over matter' nutrition strategy. I took a couple of snack-sized pork pies, some strips of dried bacon, and a handful of full fat BabyBel cheeses. I was going for low-carb fat-fuelled endurance, and it worked. I think it's the longest I've ever spent in the saddle in one go, and I didn't "bonk" at all, I didn't feel drained or like I'd run out of energy - it was just a very very long damp day. The day was worth it just for this piece of learning, I'll be (and have been since) much more confident about completely dropping the crutch of needing a couple of gels or energy bars in my bike jersey "just in case" now.

The marathon was another learning experience. I decided to run 9 minutes and walk every tenth. Run/walk as a strategy is well known for helping you go further, and I've never tried it before. I maintained fairly constant pace round the whole course, and really enjoyed the day. The weather had cleared up and was lovely and sunny, Mrs ran with me (or was in sight up the road) for most of the race, and she waited for me at 24 miles so we could finish together. We put in a big old sprint at the end and came in a few seconds under 5 hours. Number of stand-alone marathons completed now equals two.

I enjoyed the format of the weekend, I'd certainly consider doing it again - and the Wales marathon course is gorgeous. The medals are pretty sweet too - four that combine into a single one (be better if they actually clipped together though).

The rest of the year

Lots of parkrun, I love parkrun and I've really missed it lately. I cycled to Woking inaugural last week and across to Dartford and back this week. I'm enjoying planning out my next few events too. There are a few inaugurals coming up I'd like to make it to, and I'm on 90 different courses, so I should be able to get to 100 in the next few months. I'm also just 11 events away from having completed every one within the M25 (known as "LonDone" in parkrun parlance), so that's a 2014 target too.

11 events to go (the red ones) before I'm LonDone

I used to enjoy the Innovation Sports Clapham Common series, so I'll consider taking in the last two of the year - next weekend, 31st August, and then 12th October. Mrs isn't doing Rowbotham's Round Rotherham 50 mile ultra marathon this year, instead at around the same time she's doing the Go Beyond Ultra Round Ripon 35 mile race instead. I've decided it's high time I lost my ultra cherry, so I've signed up for that too. Unfortunately it's on the 4th October which is the 10th anniversary of parkrun, so I'll miss the big Bushy Park event - instead I'll be running on trails for 8 hours with my wife which I'm really really looking forward to, we've been talking about doing an ultra together ever since she started doing them at the start of 2013.

Mrs did the Endurance Life CTS (Coastal Trail Series) event in Dorset last year - it's insane with crazy amounts of accumulated height. She's entered the ultra again this year, I am not ready for that kind of challenge, so I entered the half-marathon distance, which is still bonkers. Looking forward to that one as Louise (@abradypus), Kat (@IAmKat) and her partner Jools are competing too - should be a good laugh.

The position after Richard worked his magic

I did manage to find time to finally get to Freespeed London for a bike fit from the ever friendly Richard Melik. If you need a bike fit you should get down there.

Race Report: Hell of the Ashdown 2012 (100km route)

I had a certain amount of trepidation going into this sportive. As I said previously I had a bad experience in 2010 with this course, and because of that I've always had demons to clear.

I signed up in November last year when entries opened - my friend Chris signed up too, and we secured the same start time of 09:02am. There are two route options, a "100km" route (actually 106km), and a "50km" route (actually 53km) called "Devil's de Tour". Chris and I signed up for the 100km version, and Mrs fancied taking on the challenge too and, seeing as this was her first organised bike event, she opted for the 50km route (her race report is here on www.totkat.org). A good plan - Chris had done the same thing last year.

My car is "in the shop" and so I have an enormous Audi A4 Avant of boat-like proportions for the week as a loaner car. It swallowed the bikes and associated kit like they were a small snack.

You could ship freight containers in this thing - I love it!

We signed in and relaxed with a cup of tea ahead of our start time. 9:02am came and, after a quick commemorative photo, we set off.

Chris (L) overloading the CCD with his jacket and me (R) posing ahead of the "Hell"

Chris and I had agreed before hand that we weren't going to race each other, we'd play it by ear and if one of us naturally pulled away we'd just roll with it.

Right at the start there's a massive hill - don't let it knock your confidence, it's short and sharp and soon over, then it's into the ride proper. I was a little restricted on the flat and downhill due to having a faulty front mech - I couldn't move onto the big ring at all, nor could I use the smallest cog on the cassette. I knew previously that I had been having some gearing problems, but thankfully, it being more about the uphills than the fast rolling flats, I wasn't too crippled.

First lesson: Always check your equipment well in advance of the event.

The first 30km flew past, and we made it to the first of the two feed stations in what felt like no time. There were two climbs I remembered from both years as being Big Climbs that Deserved Respect - the first was encouragingly named "The Wall", and came just after the stop. It's quite distinctive as you round the corner at the bottom and see it stretching up ahead of you into the sky. On the climbs, Chris was pulling away from me - he had a wider ranged cassette so he could stay sat down and plug away keeping a good cadence while I ran out of gears and needed to get out of the saddle a bit more. I caught up over the brows of the hills though, so we ended up staying together the whole way round.

The first feed stop

Second lesson: Think about the gearing you will need in advance, and make sure you've selected a cassette with an appropriate range (and appropriate chainrings to match).

The Wall, despite its imposing name, wasn't the mountain I remember. I felt quite good on the way up, and had plenty of energy left for the shallower climb that ran on from the top of the steep section - overtaking a dozen or two other riders on the way and catching back up with Chris.

It was disappointing not to have the high gears I needed to really take advantage of the rolling ups and downs, but with some occasionally comedic high cadence moments I don't think it held us up too much. I flew up the hill I remember walking up near to tears two years previously, and we made it to the second feed station in high spirits.

I knew it had taken around an hour and a quarter the last two years from the second feed station to the finish, and there was only the mighty "Star Hill" between us and completion. Again, I had this obstacle pretty much the size of Everest in my head, and was amazed that I just dug in and rode up it. I put in a couple of higher cadence out of the saddle moments, but most of the rise was sat down, plugging away, and overtaking people. What a different experience to the last two years!

Spot the comedy cadence and rest stops

It was a bit lumpy

We finished and rode over the timing mat at precisely the same time in order to get an equal time - though it transpires that Chris must have crossed the start mat a second behind me, as he ended up one second quicker! Bah!

I finished 369th out of 956, one place behind Chris, in a time of 4:37:31 - absolutely smashing my 2011 time of 5:23:27 (a 46:56 improvement) and 5 hour target. My secondary objective was to break into the middle third of finishers - as it was I was 39% down the field, so very nearly made it into the top third!

Obligatory finishers picture with Chris (I'm not sure why he was pulling a funny face!)

I'm really very happy about the result, even my most positive estimate put me at 4:45:00 - and I know with a bit less hanging around at the feed stations and having all my gears to hand (or foot) I could knock another few minutes off the time. So I think next year's challenge is to break 4 hours.

My bottle full of gels was an interesting experiment. I didn't get sick of the taste at all, but the liquid was a bit too viscous to eat easily through the bottle nozzle. With a bit of adjustment I think it could be a winning formula though, and certainly an order of magnitude easier than fiddling with individually wrapped gels.

I was particularly pleased about my heart rate - the majority of the time was spent in Zone 1, with 55 minutes in zone 2, and just under 7 in Zone 3. This means for the most part I was well under my functional threshold which means I have more "in the tank" to commit without crossing over into a level I couldn't sustain for an endurance event. This is what endurance training has given me, and proves that I am building a good aerobic base. There's a lot more work to do, but - just like my recent 5km PB - it's a great motivator to see real results-based evidence.

HR plot - lots of Zone 1 (under 152bpm), this is a good thing

Mrs had also done amazingly, and smashed her target with an amazing 02:26:14 finish. She was second female (the margin was under 2 minutes - she's blaming chatting at the feed station for that!), and beat most of the blokes too, coming a stonking 4th overall! Check out her position in the results table here.

My Garmin plot for the event is here.

Finish picture with a squeeeeee-ing Mrs

I got some odd looks when upon finishing I ran into the cafeteria, changed my shoes, and ran out! The 15 minute run I'd been advised to tack on the end was a real eye-opener. I remember the leaden legs I had at the Thames Turbo races last year, I had no experience of running off the bike at all. I'd by lying if I said that my legs were feeling fresh as I ran out - but certainly the long runs and brick sessions had helped. I kept cadence high and form good (and pretty much sweated to death due to running in bib-tights and two tops on the hottest day of the year so far).

A few of my favourite photos from the event, taken en route by Sportivephoto Limited.

Event photos, a couple with Chris, and one with a cheery wave for the camera

Am now very happy, no longer scared of the Big Hills, and actively looking forward to next year and the sub-4 hour challenge!

Official documentation!

Thank you Catford CC for a wonderful event, friendly and welcoming atmosphere, and brilliant marshals.

The first event on the 2012 race calendar

Tomorrow is the first event of the year, "Hell of the Ashdown" organised by Catford Cycling Club. A choice of 55km or 110km sportive in and around the Ashdown forest (in, around, and crucially up and down). It's all about the hills.

For the revised 2012 route there are 8 major climbs on the 110km route. Taken from their website:

1. Cudham Test Hill – New in 2009, this literally gives a short sharp shock in the first mile or so. Don’t worry if you have to walk the 1 in 4 stretch at the top because in any case we ask you to dismount to turn right at the T junction.
2. Toys Hill – You'll need to settle in for this 2 mile steady grind.
3. Up to Mark Beech – A new one for 2012
4. Forest Row to Ashdown Forest Heights - Another 2 mile steady slog up the same escarpment as the Wall
5. "The Wall" - This daunting climb was considered so hard that the Tour de France gave it a miss when the stage went over the Ashdown in 1994. On the Ordinance Survey map it’s steep enough to warrant a 'chevron' on two stretches. Although Kidds Hill is 1.5 miles long you will climb for a total of 2.5 miles to the summit of the Ashdown Forest at King's Standing.
6. "Nouvelle Col de Groombridge" - A new addition to the HOTA which we have just discovered. This narrow lane soars skywards seemingly forever.
7. Bayley's Hill – New in 2009 it replaces Ide Hill. We are not surprised if you've never heard of it because it's wisely shunned by those in the know. The quite lane starts on the low levels of the Weald of Kent and arduously toils up for about 2.5 miles, easy at first but it gets steeper until it rears up to crest the North Down’s Greensand Ridge.
8. Star Hill – 'The sting in the tail'. This is the one everybody talks about as it is a vicious climb coming towards the end of a gruelling ride.

I'm excited about this event. It's the first "proper" event since I've started the Ironman training. I definitely feel fitter and faster, and so I'm intrigued to see what difference that makes on the clock.

I've entered the 110km route in the last two years. It used to be held on the last Sunday in January to make it a real winter test, but the bitterly cold and icy days they had in 2009 and 2010 meant that from 2011 it was moved to the last Sunday in February. I can definitely agree that 2010 was a true winter day of near Arctic proportions!

In 2010 I had my only real experience of "bonking" (the cycling equivalent of "hitting the wall") - I ran completely dry - it was one of the most horrible experiences I've ever had. I couldn't get up any hills (even a slight rise) and was so weak that I couldn't keep the bike going in a straight line on the down hills. This kicked in after about 5 hours in the saddle. I sat in a car park by the side of the road and gave up. Tried to call Mrs (or Miss, as she was then), but there was no reception. I felt sorry for myself for a while and realised that if I didn't get my arse into gear I was going to be stuck in the car park for the rest of my life.

After hauling myself up, I was amazed to find the next feed station literally (and I mean literally) around the next corner. I stocked up on hot sweet coffee and the wonder that is Mule Bar, and rode the final hour to the finish. I learned a lot that day, I've never been on empty before, or since, and I never want to repeat the experience.

In 2011 I had a pocket full of Power Bar products so I could fuel on the bike (or by the road) and performed much better. I also stopped at the first feed station (I hadn't done in 2010, a really stupid and junior mistake, and the primary reason for my energy depletion later).

This time, I'm trying an idea for Ironamn fuelling - to put a load of liquid gels into a drinks bottle. You need to use thin liquid ones like the Science in Sport ones below, or the High5 IsoGel, otherwise the mixture is too thick to get through the nozzle.

Save time, pocket space, and stickiness!

There's nothing fiddlier whilst cycling than trying to extract a gel from your pocket, unwrap it, and consume it without dropping any rubbish. This could save a huge amount of time in an Ironman race, so it's a good opportunity to try it out.

12 gels fit, almost to the from

The bottle feels oddly heavy, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be very weird "drinking" the gels, but let's see how it turns out.

Heavy duty bag, perfect for car boot protection

We also took advantage of a good accessories sale at Evans and picked up a couple of soft bike bags - total bargain at about £35 each - 10% off total for two items, with 15% off if you buy 3 items, so we got two of these and a £1.99 water bottle. A bargain for saving the interior of the car!

This was the last two years' performance:

This year, I'd like to get sub-5 hours, but there is a different route so let's see what happens. Finishing in the bottom fifth (80th percentile or below) is a pretty poor show too, I'd like to be in the middle third (33-66%), but there are some kick-arse cyclists that do this every year, so let's just see how it goes.

Oh, and just to make it fun (and more Ironman relevant), I'm tack ing a 15-minute run onto the end as soon as I finish!

So that's it, all ready for the morning. I'll let you know what happens...