Triathlons 2011 – My Year in Review

It looks as though I’ve completed the last Triathlon of 2011, so how did the year go?

2011 was the year that I made a return to training for and competing in triathlons after not doing one for over 20 years. I did a few in my late teens, but funnily enough, after over 20 years my body is no longer in its late teens and therefore even if I had been training all that time it probably wouldn’t be as fast as it was back then. The idea therefore was to have some fun, enjoy the training and the races and to get fitter in the process. It certainly wasn’t to compete with my former self.

Pwllheli Triathlon

My first race of the year was Pwllheli Triathlon at the end of March. As this was my first event I wasn’t really sure what to expect either from myself or the other competitors so I entered it with a little trepidation. The weather was perfect, cool and dry with very little wind.

My main aim was to enjoy it, and to get around the course without making a fool of myself. Because of this I didn’t really go as hard as I could have, making sure that I had something in reserve in case I needed it. Despite this I did OK and surprised myself by finishing in 7th place overall.

Splits:

400m pool Swim: 5:57
12.8 mile Bike: 39:19
3.25 mile Run: 23:20

Time for a Coach

Pwllheli was good, the race was fun, I was pleased with my times and my result so it was time to join a club and enter some more races.

I joined the local INTR Tri club and was offered coaching from Pete Jenkins, a level 3 BTF coach. I’m fairly good at self-coaching myself as I understand all of the principals and I’m good with self-discipline but I thought it would be fun to have a coach and get some new ideas and training schedules.

The things Pete has me doing are a little different to what I’d normally do which is good, but not a complete change from what I was doing myself. I’m not sure how much it has improved my training or my fitness / speed  (that we’ll never know) but it is good having to submit my records to him for review and getting feedback on my efforts. Somehow having a coach and someone to report to each week not only motivates me to do the training sessions but also seems to make them feel more worthwhile. Just having someone take an interest in your performance (or lack of performance) makes it feel as though there is an added reason for doing it.

Brecon Triathlon

My next race was Brecon Triathlon on June 4th. Once again the weather was perfect and the race was really good fun. Anna and Morgan came along to support me and had a good day out too which was nice. For some reason my swim was terrible but I went well on the bike and run and came 5th overall, a result that I was really pleased with. It meant that I was 3rd Veteran (over 40’s) and won a bottle of wine for my efforts. I also met Scott Butterworth who I’d previously spoken to at Pwllheli. He beat me in both races, but I was closer to him this time!

Splits:

400m swim: 7:05
13.2 mile Bike: 38:41
3.2 mile Run: 22:28

Wotton Triathlon

Next up was a little triathlon in Wotton-Under-Edge. I did this race last year for a bit of fun and to help my sister raise some money. It’s only a small local charity race and I managed to win it, so the pressure was on to do well again. The weather was terrible and this year a few people from some local triathlon clubs had turned up so there would be some stiff competition. I managed to hold on to my title though and better still, improved considerably on my times despite the terrible weather.

Splits:

450m Swim: 6:23
13 mile Bike: 42:05
4.4 mile Run: 30:37

Injury Time

I guess this was inevitable, but whilst on a training run along the coast path, I twisted my ankle, tearing some ligaments and putting me out of action for quite a while. I was on crutches for a bit and then gradually got back into doing things, but now, 10 weeks later my ankle is still sore and I’ve been unable to do much in the way of running or even swimming. I have still managed to ride my bike and I am now getting back into swimming and gradually adding in some runs to my training, but my ankle still hurts and its taking a lot longer to heal than I had thought it would. I have still managed to do a few races though.

Hardwick Triathlon

My next race was my first open water swim race ever in Hardwick, near Tewkesbury on August 14th. I hadn’t done any running or swimming on my ankle for a few weeks, but did try to increase my running just a week before the event. This was a mistake as I got shin splints and could barely walk let alone run. I did the event anyway and managed to get around virtually pain free. I loved it too, the open water swim was really nice, the bike course was good and I enjoyed the lapped runs.

I managed to place 10th overall and came in 2nd Veteran, only 3 seconds behind 1st place veteran.

Splits

750m Open Water Swim: 11:20
15 mile Bike: 42:11
3 mile Run: 20:13

Shrewsbury Triathlon

Shrewsbury Triathlon on September 4th was my next race, Pete my coach was doing it too. I thought I was supposed to be doing this for fun and not really worrying about the racing? Well, I was, but there’s nothing wrong with a little bit of healthy competition now and then.

Once again the weather was lovely and the swim in the River Severn was gorgeous. Anna and Morgan had come along to support again and we had a really good race day. My biking wasn’t great but I was pleased with my run, especially considering the fact that I’d very little running due to my ankle injury. Once again I was pleased and surprised at my results. 10th overall (beating Pete by about 30 seconds) and 1st Veteran.

Splits

500m Open Water Swim (incl. run to T1) 6:56
14.3 mile Bike: 39:30
3 mile Run + T2: 19:53

A Great Year

Overall it’s been a really good year as far as my races go. I’ve enjoyed the training, I’ve surprised myself with my performance and results and despite the ankle injury my body has held up fairly well.

Best of all, I’ve made a load of new friends and really look forward to both training sessions and the races. I like training on my own, but it’s also good to train with others and the social side of the sport has proved to be fun.

I started doing this for enjoyment and to keep fit, I’ve achieved both those goals and many more besides. I wasn’t supposed to take it too seriously and I’m never going to be top of the pile, but my results would seem to suggest that I’m ‘above average’. Hopefully with a bit more training and some good form in races I’ll be able to do well next year as well. It’s still all for fun and enjoyment but come race day I may well start getting a little competitive!

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Alan Cole

Alan is a Freelance Website Designer, Sports & Exercise Science Lab Technician and full time Dad & husband with far too many hobbies: Triathlete, Swimming, Cycling, Running, MTBing, Surfing, Windsurfing, SUPing, Gardening, Photography.... The list goes on.