Honestly, I approached this morning with some trepidation. I've been changing my running style ofver the last few months, and this week, I pushed the changes to a new level, moving much further onto a forefoot strike pattern. On Thursday I ran about 7 km right up on my forefoot, and while it felt strong, powerful & fast, it also put a hell of a lot of strain on my calves, such that I basically ended up wearing my calf guards for the next two days hoping it would help minimise the recovery time. The 2 lap cycle of the course followed by a short run in my new minimalist shoes on Friday probably didn't help either. Also, in the weeks leading up to this race, I've been doing kinda maintenance training, trying to improve a couple of bits and pieces here, rather than training specifically for the race.
The point of this intro is that when I start bitching towards the end, you all realise that its all my own bloody fault.
Since my phone is deid, I invested in a wee travel alarm clock. Being analogue, its not very accurate. In fact, I thought I set it for 5:30, and it went off at 5:10. Brilliant. Smearing the sleep from my eyes eventually hauled my carcass out of bed and I pulled the rest of my stuff together into my race box, leaving a trail of destruction behind me. Shovelled some oats & fruit down my throat and fed the rabbits then it was time to be off to the race. Down the motorway and into the park, car in, gear out, moving towards registration, all still in a little haze of not quite awake yet. Into registration & the morning started to perk up thanks to the lovely ladies of GTC and their early morning chat & marker pens. I marked up my bike and got the race number on my belt then headed off to park up in transition and see what banter I get from Tommy and Maisie. They were on form. Most importantly though, I was pointed to rack my bike anywhere I could find on the line just to the left side of the transition entrance. The spot at the far side of the first bay was empty (you can get about 4 bikes in a bay, and indeed only the nearest spot was taken. HOLY SHIT there was no fucking way I could end up running past that spot when I came out of the water. Bagsied!
So I meticulously set up my transition, ditching the arm warmers after an earlier conversation with Ele (and may I point out that it was one of the best decision of the day as they would've just helped me to overheat. Thanks Ele!), then off to chat with assorted GTCers until my wave started.
I went down towards the water to watch the first wave swim, and it did look a bit mental from the jetty out under the bridge - for anyone that was there, I did see someone almost swim into the big blue boom before the bridge, which admittedly would've been quite funny. I stopped off there to cheer on all the GTCers in the wave out of the water, then it was time to get into my slinky wee neoprene number so I could get out into that cool, *ahem* clear, water.
Man, there were a lot of weeds in there. I didn't expect to be pulling bits and pieces off of my arms and legs while waiting to start. Still, it felt warmer than in May for the sprint race.
Before I knew it, the Dave was flexing his finger and the hooter was sounded. I cracked on at a rare pace for me up to the first buoy, thanking my evenings at Loch Lomond with the club to get me used to swimming in a group. Once round there I pulled back a little and just settled into my own little rhythm and from there on it was all about sighting and keeping my focus, getting into transition 31 minutes after the hooter. Pleased.
T1 was a bit of a shambles for me - I deffo took too long faffing at 2:46, but I was out and the bike and off for down, up, down, turn, up, down, up, down, turn, repeat x 6. 7 laps of that was a bit of cruel mental torture, only eased by the number of GTC marshalls along the route cheering us on. Thanks guys.
I completed the 7 laps in 1:17:30, and I'm kinda pleased by that, except the hill climbing form I've been working on broke down more than it should've. There were too many times when I was dropping down the gears to a quite low one going up hill, only to remember that I actually *can* go faster up the bloody things, so my spin kicked in and I could crank up notch or three. There were several people I must've surprised as they went past me on the steeper section only for me to quite quickly shoot past them up on the big ring before we'd topped the hill. I'll get there. I was also quite surprised at the number of people who'd come over the crest of a hill only to gently pedal (or disgustingly free wheel) down the other side. FFS, a some of the hills are so small that with a little bit of effort cranking it hard down the hill you can practically get up the other side without pedalling.
Through the laps, I had a bit of a to and fro with a few guys who'd take me on the uphill only for me to take them back near the top or on the downhill (I was hitting 50km/hr + & they can't've been reaching 40). A couple broke me towards the end of the course, while I managed to brake a couple of others. Finishing up though, my legs were not happy. Overall, the time was Decent, and within my target range, but could've been better.
T2 was a much better affair than T1, and in short order I was in my gutties and off, tearing out like a greyhound out of the box, much to the surprise of the assembled GTC ladies, though it did get the blood moving round my legs nicely. Unfortunately since I decided to go back to my old old trainers I was no longer used to tying laces properly in a hurry so had to stop and get them sorted once I was out of eye line of said ladies. D'oh. After that it was all about finding a decent pace that my legs could sustain, but I never felt I was giving it my best, I just couldn't get into a proper rhythm. The ache that was returning to my calves held me back from pushing up properly onto my forefeet and consequently I couldn't pull my body position up to what I wanted. Adding in fatigue just made it that bit further away. But I persevered, averaging a 5 min/km pace across the race, which when taken in context (my PB 10k time is just under 46 minutes) its not too bad. At the end of lap 1, those GTC ladies were all lined up cheering on, and without a shadow of a doubt, it made turning away from that finishing chute less painful.
I plodded through much of the last lap, fighting off a little cramp, some ITB pain and a niggle in the quad. As I came up the short hill past Craig & could see the end in sight, suddenly my form came back, maybe so that I could finish strong & show off, but really, where had you been for the other 9km form??? Get it together!!!!.
So I crossed the finishing line frustrated, because that was a run I could've done better. I'm going to have to do a number on the Edinburgh 10km to cleanse the taste from my mouth. That being said, having what I thought was a shit run & nailing a 9.5km route in 47:26 should not be sniffed at. Especially considering my 10km PB.
After that it was all about the post race banter & much deserved pintage. 02:39:48. Job well done, with plenty of learning points to be worked on in the close season.
This blog only touches on the support given before, during and after by the marshalls and my fellow GTCers; without you guys this race would've been a far less enjoyable affair. Thank you each and everyone of you, I appreciated every cheer & supportive shout, legends one and all.
This blog is brought to you by the awesome Nine Inch Nails and the haunting Something I Can Never Have. There are many more good Nine Inch Nails tracks out there. You have access to youtube. Go investigate.
The point of this intro is that when I start bitching towards the end, you all realise that its all my own bloody fault.
Since my phone is deid, I invested in a wee travel alarm clock. Being analogue, its not very accurate. In fact, I thought I set it for 5:30, and it went off at 5:10. Brilliant. Smearing the sleep from my eyes eventually hauled my carcass out of bed and I pulled the rest of my stuff together into my race box, leaving a trail of destruction behind me. Shovelled some oats & fruit down my throat and fed the rabbits then it was time to be off to the race. Down the motorway and into the park, car in, gear out, moving towards registration, all still in a little haze of not quite awake yet. Into registration & the morning started to perk up thanks to the lovely ladies of GTC and their early morning chat & marker pens. I marked up my bike and got the race number on my belt then headed off to park up in transition and see what banter I get from Tommy and Maisie. They were on form. Most importantly though, I was pointed to rack my bike anywhere I could find on the line just to the left side of the transition entrance. The spot at the far side of the first bay was empty (you can get about 4 bikes in a bay, and indeed only the nearest spot was taken. HOLY SHIT there was no fucking way I could end up running past that spot when I came out of the water. Bagsied!
So I meticulously set up my transition, ditching the arm warmers after an earlier conversation with Ele (and may I point out that it was one of the best decision of the day as they would've just helped me to overheat. Thanks Ele!), then off to chat with assorted GTCers until my wave started.
I went down towards the water to watch the first wave swim, and it did look a bit mental from the jetty out under the bridge - for anyone that was there, I did see someone almost swim into the big blue boom before the bridge, which admittedly would've been quite funny. I stopped off there to cheer on all the GTCers in the wave out of the water, then it was time to get into my slinky wee neoprene number so I could get out into that cool, *ahem* clear, water.
Man, there were a lot of weeds in there. I didn't expect to be pulling bits and pieces off of my arms and legs while waiting to start. Still, it felt warmer than in May for the sprint race.
Before I knew it, the Dave was flexing his finger and the hooter was sounded. I cracked on at a rare pace for me up to the first buoy, thanking my evenings at Loch Lomond with the club to get me used to swimming in a group. Once round there I pulled back a little and just settled into my own little rhythm and from there on it was all about sighting and keeping my focus, getting into transition 31 minutes after the hooter. Pleased.
T1 was a bit of a shambles for me - I deffo took too long faffing at 2:46, but I was out and the bike and off for down, up, down, turn, up, down, up, down, turn, repeat x 6. 7 laps of that was a bit of cruel mental torture, only eased by the number of GTC marshalls along the route cheering us on. Thanks guys.
I completed the 7 laps in 1:17:30, and I'm kinda pleased by that, except the hill climbing form I've been working on broke down more than it should've. There were too many times when I was dropping down the gears to a quite low one going up hill, only to remember that I actually *can* go faster up the bloody things, so my spin kicked in and I could crank up notch or three. There were several people I must've surprised as they went past me on the steeper section only for me to quite quickly shoot past them up on the big ring before we'd topped the hill. I'll get there. I was also quite surprised at the number of people who'd come over the crest of a hill only to gently pedal (or disgustingly free wheel) down the other side. FFS, a some of the hills are so small that with a little bit of effort cranking it hard down the hill you can practically get up the other side without pedalling.
Through the laps, I had a bit of a to and fro with a few guys who'd take me on the uphill only for me to take them back near the top or on the downhill (I was hitting 50km/hr + & they can't've been reaching 40). A couple broke me towards the end of the course, while I managed to brake a couple of others. Finishing up though, my legs were not happy. Overall, the time was Decent, and within my target range, but could've been better.
T2 was a much better affair than T1, and in short order I was in my gutties and off, tearing out like a greyhound out of the box, much to the surprise of the assembled GTC ladies, though it did get the blood moving round my legs nicely. Unfortunately since I decided to go back to my old old trainers I was no longer used to tying laces properly in a hurry so had to stop and get them sorted once I was out of eye line of said ladies. D'oh. After that it was all about finding a decent pace that my legs could sustain, but I never felt I was giving it my best, I just couldn't get into a proper rhythm. The ache that was returning to my calves held me back from pushing up properly onto my forefeet and consequently I couldn't pull my body position up to what I wanted. Adding in fatigue just made it that bit further away. But I persevered, averaging a 5 min/km pace across the race, which when taken in context (my PB 10k time is just under 46 minutes) its not too bad. At the end of lap 1, those GTC ladies were all lined up cheering on, and without a shadow of a doubt, it made turning away from that finishing chute less painful.
I plodded through much of the last lap, fighting off a little cramp, some ITB pain and a niggle in the quad. As I came up the short hill past Craig & could see the end in sight, suddenly my form came back, maybe so that I could finish strong & show off, but really, where had you been for the other 9km form??? Get it together!!!!.
So I crossed the finishing line frustrated, because that was a run I could've done better. I'm going to have to do a number on the Edinburgh 10km to cleanse the taste from my mouth. That being said, having what I thought was a shit run & nailing a 9.5km route in 47:26 should not be sniffed at. Especially considering my 10km PB.
After that it was all about the post race banter & much deserved pintage. 02:39:48. Job well done, with plenty of learning points to be worked on in the close season.
This blog only touches on the support given before, during and after by the marshalls and my fellow GTCers; without you guys this race would've been a far less enjoyable affair. Thank you each and everyone of you, I appreciated every cheer & supportive shout, legends one and all.
This blog is brought to you by the awesome Nine Inch Nails and the haunting Something I Can Never Have. There are many more good Nine Inch Nails tracks out there. You have access to youtube. Go investigate.
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