The edited version of yesterday's post

I'm not retiring


I doubt there was any rumours about it, but just in case I want to say it. I'm not retiring after worlds, specially now that Auckland has secured the grand finale of the 2012 triathlon world championship.

Yes.. a tiny island of less than 5million people managed to get one of the biggest triathlon events in the market in the real world (sorry US, you are the magazine/movies world for me) for the second time. It speaks very good of the nat ional .n body (triNZ) and it's also a good reflection of how over-represented we are in the world of triathlon (New Zealand was apparently the first ironman race outside the US, and has 3 of the 9 triathlon olympic medals in the male race).

I hope this gives all the triathletes (and wannabe triathletes) a good reason to join a tri club. And a good reason to all the clubs to start getting "out there" and doing things. And a good reason for TriNZ to start working or closely with the clubs. I loved the club atmosphere during the aussie World Champs final last year. I'd love to see something similar or better.

And I'm not bitchig about people's participation here, I know the sport hasn't stopped growing in the last 3 years. I'm just hopeful that each and every one of us does their part to make 2012 a great year for triathlon in New Zealand, and (unfortunately for you, southeners) Auckland.

Back to this post's topic. I'm not retiring, I was considering a move to longer distance after Budapest (you know.. the big miles...the ugly tatoo in the ankle that I'm not gonna get... the big talk). But, dammit!, no way I'm moving out when I have the chance to kick ass in my own back yard!. I might do one or two, but the focust will still be to get out fast in the races.

We do our speed runs in the site where the world champs are going to be happening, We know each bit of the bike course, and the waitemata harbour has no place where I havent swam... retiring? NO WAY.

I'm gonna have to keep training, and harder  his time because each 30-34 male will be an obstacle for my qualification first, and a mate later.

I'm not retiring

I doubt there was any rumours about it, but just in case I want to say it. I'm not retiring after worlds, specially now that Auckland has secured the grand finale of the 2012 triathlon world championship.

Yes.. a tiny island of less than 5million people managed to get one of the biggest triathlon events in the market in the real world (sorry US, you are the magazine/movies world for me) for the second time. It speaks very good of the national triathlon body (triNZ) and it's also a good reflection of how over-represented we are in the world of triathlon (New Zealand was apparently the first ironman race outside the US, and has 3 of the 9 triathlon olympic medals in the male race).

I hope this gives all the triathletes (and wannabe triathletes) a good reason to join a tri club. And a good reason to all the clubs to start getting "out there" and doing things. And a good reason for TriNZ to start working more closely with the clubs. I loved the club atmosphere during the aussie World Champs final last year. I'd love to see something similar or better.

And I'm not bitchig about people's participation here, I know the sport hasn't stopped growing in the last 3 years. I'm just hopeful that each and every one of us does their part to make 2012 a great year for triathlon in New Zealand, and (unfortunately for you, southeners) Auckland.

Back to this post's topic. I'm not retiring, I was considering a move to longer distance after Budapest (you know.. the big miles...the ugly tatoo in the ankle that I'm not gonna get... the big talk). But, dammit!, no way I'm moving out when I have the chance to kick ass in my own back yard!. I might do one or two, but the focust will still be to get out fast in the races.

We do our speed runs in the site where the world champs are going to be happening, We know each bit of the bike course, and the waitemata harbour has no place where I havent swam... retiring? NO WAY.
I'm gonna have to keep training, and hardert his time because each 30-34 male will be an obstacle for my qualification first, and a mate later.

Disclaimer: this post may be subjet to changes by the editor/boss/wife she has not stamped her approval yet.


On another note, Thanks for the votes, to DRog and Patrick who identified their votes. Nat has done a lot of work in the PR side and got all sorts of family and friends to log in and vote. It doesn't stop here. stay tuned.

Date: 29 June
Sport: Cycling
Time: 55min
Dist: n/a (own WT session)
Comment: it wasn't boring!

Vote for Valen

I bidded to get funding through an initiative called do your thing. This company has 100 grand to give away to different people (or one only) and I thought it could help me go to Budapest and past.

I need the two readers of this blog (that's including you, Nat) to vote for me and pass the message on, I need you to help me on this one.

http://doyourthing.co.nz/2010-00690/valentino-luna-hernandez

so.. what's in it for me? you may think,

Well, first of all there's the pleasure of reading this lines day and day again and finding how good a choice it was to pick the triathlete way of life.
Then I can offer one triathlon tip per each of you (two) that votes for me and lets me know.

And I am open to any offers as well... it's a two way thing.

so, get ready, go voting and THANK YOU... sincerely.

On another note, I've got the programme running from next sunday (why do coaches start programmes on the Sunday?). there's 3 days off in the next 6 weeks, so don't be surprised if I skip the odd post. I;m under strict orders of resting, recovering, and eating well.
I'm giving it the best shot... I shall prevail

Date: 28 june
Sport: Swimming /// Running
Time: 65min /// 50min
Dist: 3.5km /// 9km
Comment: dark, cold and wet, running doens't get any worst.

the epic rides

Today marked my last long ride (over 4hr) of the preparation for the Budapest tri. The work will focus now in getting less mileage but at a higher pace and slowly tune up to get the perfect 40km by the second week of September.

On a good note, Nat and I will be getting some more of our Sunday mornings back. I'll be also less chaffed you know where, and I may not need to stock up huge amounts of food in my bento box.

On a sad note, I'm saying goodbye to the epic days of getting out of the city and back in all sitting in my trusty Avanti Quantum (aka "blueray"). One thing that I enjoy about the base training is the epic rides. Getting up early, battling mood and temptations (a lazy sunday in bed reading and doing just nothing), getting out in the dark after a quick porridge and pedalling. Pedalling for 3, 4, 5, 6 hours through the city and the countryside, through the woods and the beachlands and stopping for a feed in at the dairy. Bonking every now and then and enduring the cold(ish) and the heat.

I love that sense of adventure that the long bike rides give me. Cycling is the weakest of my disciplines and even though I've been continuously on a bike since I'm 5, I never rode over 30km until I was 28. Slowly I've learned to enjoy it, and now I love it. I'm already lobbying Nat for a biking holiday some time soon.

So, the next 10 weeks will be mostly urban riding and lots of windtraining... the challenge will be to be able to sell it to you as a good blog post... we shall see.
Date: 27 June
Sport: cycling
Time: 4.30hr
Dist: 100km
Comment: what an awesome day!

Race report - CMC 2up time trial

It was a foggy day in Auckland. Even at 1pm, on our way to Waiuku, there were pouches of fog in the hills. Today was my first seriously intense workout since my stint as a staggiaire in the plains of the Taranaki. My mates Martin, Carl and Gordo and myself were the racing party, with no support crew or supporting vehicle.

We raced the Counties Manukau Cycling 2person TT, an event held once a year by the cycling club. This was my first time doing a 2person TT and the first serious TT (40km) since the qualifying race for Budapest.

We parked in Carl's mum place in Waiuku and rode to the start (13km) as a warm up. There we registered and got cold over 1hr until our turn to start came. Gordo and Carl were team 1 (the vixens) and Martin and I were team 2. There was just 1min difference in the start.

The course is a flat out and back 10km and we had to do 2 laps. Head wind on the way in and tail wind on the way back, temperature was 14/15 degrees. The plan was to do 1min each on the way in and 2min each coming back and try to stick to 35/36 and 42/45 kmh. It's a funny dynamic, because you have to keep a constant dialogue with your partner to check speed is OK, turns are fair, and the general comment when passing or being passed. I'm quite a talker at races and had no trouble, and I had to warn M. a couple of times so he didn't get  carried away.

We cought the guys after the first turnaroud and it was all working pretty much to plan until 2km to halfway, I kind of bonked for 5km and had good ol' Martin doing more than his fair share of the work in the front. I was not 100% with a runny nose and some coughing, so I didn't feel guilty for that.

After a good gel fix I was back in the game and took some turns in the front, allowing my mate to drink and gel himself. The speed dropped from 35 to 33.5 onto the headwind and after the final turnaround I put my head down and went for it, unfortunatelly I wasn't doing super well and Martin was able to tow me at a higher speed. I happily sat in the back for 5 of the last 10m and was able to drive the last 3km.
We finished in a respectable 64.5min and waited for our mates.

We rode back 20km to the cars, and jumped on another 1hr trip to Auckland. It was a fun event and I wouldn't mind doing it again. Triathlon races are bike TT's in the middle of a swim and a 10km sprint, and the more practice I get, the better I'll be for Budapest. The weather could have been more gentle, but all in all I'm happy with my afternoon (probably because I didn't measure my HR, ha ha ha)

Date: 26 June
Sport:  Cycling
Time: 140min
Dist: 68km (40TT)
Comment: racing, that's the name of the game

Pool length

All of my swim training has been done in a 25m pool. Very occasionally I go to a 50m pool to work out when I can't make my class. Both of them have their good things and their bad things. And I always wonder if any of the two will be more suited to the sport.

After readin for a bit I found that the 25m pool allows for more turning and gliding (about 30secs in a 200m swim). That "downtime" is good for the body as it disperses lactacte accumulation and may even give the muscles the change to replenish creatinine stores. It also helps to bring the HR down for a bit. Times are usually shorter in a 25m pool and the speed is faster.

The 50m pool, however, provides the chance to teach the body to deal with lactate accumulation and work in a higher heart rate ratio, as the pauses are less.

In my personal experience, I like the 50m pool because I can do a lot more "stretch and glide" long sets and practice my secret 3-3-2-2 cycle that I do in races.

As in most races we don't have time for a pause and pull off the wall, I'd say the 50m pool is better for us triathletes because it's more close to open water than the 25m pool.

The weekend has started and there's a race report to come (2up TT on the Sat) and some more photos (going for another long ride on the Sunday. I'm off to a siesta to get the body ready for action,

Date 24 June / 25 June
Sport: Cycling / Swimming
Time: 75min / 60min
Dist: 39km / 3km
Comment: 400m TT shows I'm swimming backwards, SHAME!

Motivation

I wrote a long post bitching about stuff (work, winter, blah blah blah). luckily I realized that I was missing the point. In brief, I've been a bit lost over the past 3 weeks and feel that it's a struggle to keep motivation high at all times. The good thing is that I know what may be the issues here.
#1 work stress
#2 winter is here to stay
#3 not having a full programme
#4 plateau in swimming performance

So let's break it down: Work is work and it will not change, I can, and I will.
Winter comes once a year, and there's no way out, just a bit of "harden up" juice.
I'm meeting with coach for the rest of my programme and hopefully to work out what's going on with my swimming.

We're getting a bit more clarity now: there is issues, and there is solutions. So why am I worried? I DON'T KNOW. But now that I've written it down it doesn't appear so complicated. Maybe I just needed to think about it for over 3 minutes. and it's done.

On another note, we've beat Greece 2-nil and passed to the second round of the World Cup, I lost my voice again, but only for half a day. A happy man again.

Date: 22 June / 23 June
Sport: Cycling / Swimming
Time: 70min / 70min
Dist: 37km / 3.7km
Comment:  finally cought up with my training log and the blog : )

Performance enhancing air

This post talks about farts. If you don’t like talking about farts don’t read it. I don’t intend to be funny either. Well… not completely.
I got this email today:

From: Martin
Sent: Tuesday, 22 June 2010 2:05 p.m.
To: Carl;Valentino; Gordon; Cyril, Daniel
Subject: RE: Luna H


I kept getting my timing wrong last night - I was only farting on the way down the hills - I needed the boost on the way up !!!!!!


________________________________________


From: Carl
Sent: Tuesday, 22 June 2010 02:04 p.m.
To: Martin; Valentino; Gordon; Cyril; Daniel
Subject: RE: Luna H
a huge amount.......and after last nights run session i know he eats alot of beans as well!!!
i kept hearing him this morning counting up to 1000.....must be doing huge reps

As you may guess… It turned out that the nacho’s night we had on Sunday (good Argentinean friends leaving for a holiday) and the leftovers I took to work had helped me through the day’s workouts. I excelled in last night’s hill repeats thanks to the propulsion I got.

So I decided to do a bit of research about the matter. I got into a couple of forums about the subject and they all agree that it is not banned by ITU, so I am happy I can use wind as a secret weapon. Then I found a website that has all the answers.

It appears that the average person has about 14 episodes a day. And the chances increase as you have more and more of the “hard to digest” sugars, beans are well known for that. But another “hard to digest” kind of sugar is Fibre, that is actually indigestible. So fruits (apples specially) are to be avoided 3 hours before workouts if you want to be a well respected guy/girl in the training squad.

More interesting is the fact that most of the guys I asked say that running is the discipline where they have the noisy episodes. Probably because is the last leg of a race, or because of the positioning of the body, who knows.

Lastly, I heard of one case of a guy who farted on his wetsuit, and this was the result.

Happy training everyone… and watch what you eat.

Date: 21 June
Sport: Swimming /// Running
Time: 55min /// 65 min
Dist: 3.2km /// 9km
Comment: running high on beans.

The secret of pacing

Well… I thought I would leave a few days to add suspense to today’s log. I’m pretty sure that readers by the hundred have congregated to the road to Budapest to know what is the secret to pace greatly for each and every workout, for each and every race.

In brief, I reckon it all comes to knowing your limits and your objectives, using your brains a lot for other than running or swimming or biking and calculating your efforts and recovery time. Above all, recovery time.

Knowing your limits: it is important to blow it up every now and then. To know the signs that come just before that bonking episode and what comes just after. I am not great at blowing up, but I had had my few occasions. I learned a lot from them and every now and then I will try to push the boundary a bit further.

Knowing your objectives: it’s important to have some target time or distance and making sure is something that can be done without blowing up. Or at least pretty close to. I always have in mind what coach or I need to get to have the word “decent” next to workout”

Using your brains a lot: I found it helpful to play math games during some swim or run sets. It helps me concentrate on things that don’t hurt. And it helps me to make sure I am alert and awake and the best I can be on the day. I can also project what will happen next.

Recovery time: most workouts are repetitions, with a very short recovery time. The fitter you are the better you recover. And the more you recover, the fitter you become. So, it is not only important to make sure the rest intervals are respected, but also that day to day you have a good sleep.

Finally, when it comes to execution, I have many complex formulas, but the most commonly used is: set the target speed/time a couple of k’s or sec’s faster or slower. Start on a 90% of the altered target speed, settle to 85%, and finish on a 100%. I only get it right when my mind and body are in good sync. And that is something that everyone has their own way to achieve.

That’s my 2cents worth on the matter. If it does make a difference, I’m happy for you.

Dates: 18-19-20 June
Sports: Swim/Cycling/Run/Cycling
Times: 60min/45min/55min/300min
Dist:3.1km / n/a / 12km / 130km
Comment: It was a quiet wet weekend with a long ride at the end

off to the local

Another busy day at the office.... only 5 more to go and then I'm back to normal (I've noticed that this little tenure has also help me gain some weight, which I am not as happy for).

Anyway, time flyes and I'm off to see the Argentina game with a crazy crowd, I've got a 6am swim that I don't know how I'm gonna do to make South Korea will be a serious game and we need to win to secure our ticket to the second round.

I've been thinking on yesterday's post and I may have the secret for pacing, so if I were you I'd check this space again to discover how to nail those sessions.

Date: 17 June
Sport: Cycling
Time: 75min
Dist: 40km
Comment: first road ride since the Naki tour, and I still haven't cleaned my bike!
shame.

On pacing

It keeps suprising me how difficult I find to nail the right pace at times. Depending on the time of the year, the sport and I guess many other things, sometimes the I am "at the right pace" and some other times I am "going too fast too soon" and other times "too slow" or "finishing too fresh"
I am talking about the combination of the speed and heart rate range required for some workouts. As one keeps piling years of training it should be a given that one gains some knowledge on how much to push to achieve those speeds and HRs. Unfortunately, though, it is al governed by one part of the brain that we can';t control at will. We can make mental notes, or paper notes, but when it's time to walk the walk (run the run would be more apropriate) anything can happen.

I struggle the most on the swim and the run because I can't measure live speed on any of them (a garmin 410x will do me good... so take note.. my birthday is on Aug.23). The infamous 7.5minutes run that I talked on a previous post is the first example that comes to mind. Time trials on the swim would be the second.

Today we had one and I sucked big time. There was no excuses, just very bad execution and some minor dissapointment (I'm quite resilient so it was over after a coffee and a muffin). It started quite well and after 500m the lactate buildup was throught the roof, the arms started getting the ants and I slowed it. After 300m of recovery swim I was back on the road. By this time the damage was done, I finished 15 sec's off the last TT (August last year). On a good note, that result is still some 20 secs better than last years personal worst.

it'll keep bothering me until I can repeat it and get better... I'm fired up again just by writing it, ha ha ha.

Date: 16 June
Sport: Swim /// Run
Time: 50 min /// 117 min
Dist: 2.8km /// 22km
Comment: TT /// very LSD

it was only a fright!

The legs are OK, I made to the gym and spin class later and there were no issues. I even run off the bike and it was fine. I'd like to think is over.

Besides, I am looking forward to have a long chat with coach and start fine tuning more details for the following two months.
It is funny how the off season-in season mixture that the september race brings is long enough that I need a bit of re thinking half way through and at the same time, it is short enough that I am almost half way there!!

There has been some development in the details of the race, someone really nice has managed to get us a very cheap place for the week of the race. And there will be some more fundraising coming on soon, so stay tuned.

On the bike front, I'm still chasing a good TT bike so I'll see what comes my way, but I'm sure I will get one before August,

that's all that's to report for today,

Date: 15 June
Sport: Cycle /// Run
Time: 1.10hr /// 14 min
Dist: n/a /// 3km
Comment: indoor trainer and transition run, all looking good!

back to business

Well... not quite.

We had a nice holiday and my legs were certainly glad that I gave them a rest. I went for a swim and a run on the friday and that was my last workout for the weekend.

Wellington is the capital city, the city of arts and dirty streets, and they said a weather that drive you crazy. I've been lucky that all times I went there the gods were nice to us. This weekend was no exception and I walked up and down those nice streets for the whole day and night.
The way back was suppossed to be a 12 hour train ride through beautiful countryside but that didn't happen, instead I drove 9 hours from A to B so we could make it home.
The result: legs tired, mind tired, heart full of joy, went to bed after 11pm... missed swimming in the morning.
But I didn't feel guilty. As coach says, there is no such a thing as a make up workout. Today I decided to listen and play safe.
Out for a pm run and I could only warm up when a strange kind of cramp (see attached explanatory figure) started giving me a hard time. I thought I could run through it but it only got worst, so after 10 minutes I was out of the track. wondering what the hell it is that happened.

I am not worried as I know tomorrow I will feel nothing and could run the session by myself, and it also ment that the weekend was 3 days instead of 2. These little weekends out are important in many senses, specially to accumulate brownie points, but also to let the mind off the day to day stuff and sleep in.

Tomorrow is the start of the second phase of my programme. It has already been popping out in some of the swims with faster tempo sets and lil' time trials, and it will surely start to show up on the run as well. The bike, I think, will wait for a couple of weeks. Phase 2 is about strength endurance, which means a faster  pace all around and some high intensity swim/run. It should be all good and the miles I've put in the last two months shouldn't have taken any of my fitness, on the contrary, it should be up.
I also changed the design of the blog, out of boredom.

Date: 14 June
Sport: run
Time: 10min
Dist: 1.5km
Comment: unescheduled pit stop... to be continued

what I want to be

At 5 I remember wanting to be a pilot when I was older
At 10 it had changed to something like an engineer or architect
at 15 I was pretty sure biochemistry was the place to be, and basketball player
at 17 it was literature and travel writing
at 19 linguistics and mountaneering
at 22 it remained
at 25 I was lost
at 30 I want to be an world champion triathlete (among other things)

life changes.
It never crossed my mind that three sports stitched one after the other would be one way of achieving one's potential. It never crossed my mind that it would provide a framework to align other parts of my life. And here I am, writing a log of my 5 months trip to a world championships race.
I am realistic, to be a world champion I have to up two of my disciplines to a standard that can only be done in 2 to 3 years of training. The funny thing is that I am ready to commit those years.
But the secret, I think, is to have some balance... and to know when to take a rest.
I'm off for three days and most likely wont be updating this log until monday.

Date: 9 June
Sport: Swimming
Time: 50min
Dist: 2.8km
Comment: it's been a week of reflection, It's good to look inside every now and then

the racers

It happened on one of the nights at the infamous Taranaki accomodation lodge. We were battered after a day of racing, ready for dinner, telly and bed. The communal kitchen was used by a family group and the conversation looped around racing techniques, wheel sizes, motors, laps and transponders.

Gordo and I cooked and ate dinner and overheard the group and after a good 20 minutes we were still wondering what sort of racing they were talking about, my guess was that it was some rowing sport, Gordo thought it was kart racing.

After diner we moved to the TV sofa and chatted with the group. It turned out they were pilots of radio controlled vehicles, participating in a 4up national championship: a team of 4 vehicles races round the track. The world of radio controlled vehicle racing as told by this guys sounded pretty interesting and after half an hour I was ready to swich to it and sell my bike and other toys.

I guess they may have had the same feeling of the world of cycling and triathlon according to Valentino. In brief (I need to go to bed soon), the rc pilots family and us shared something, we were all very much into our races and so passionate about it to the point of choosing to spend a long weekend devoted to the sport.

Although is not my whole life, triathlon does occupy a big chunk of it, and it has never ever been a burden (even today, with my stiff legs). I always hope that I can transmit that feeling of achievement that guides my training to others as these guys did with me when talking about their racing cars. I'm back in full training schedule till the weekend (two days offs!, yay!) and starting to wind up for the football world cup, here's a lil' video about teamwork that may make you smile.



Date: 8 June
Sport: Swim /// Run
Time: 60min /// 100min
Dist: 3.4km /// 16.4km
Comment: I loved going back into the water

Silly mistakes

I woke up with the legs feeling stiff.
Not suprising, but worrying nontheless. Skipped the gym in favour of 20min more of sleeping and bolted to work. I sat there all day catching up with stuff, staff and emails. when I realized it was 1pm and I had drank nothing. While I had lunch on my desk I thought which are the kind of things I do that are undermining my training. Here is my list:

Mini stretching sessions, most times I do between 5 and 10min of stretching, which is not enough, specially after long rides.
Driving after training or events: as an example, I jumped on my car after a 2.30 hour ride at high intensity yesterday afternoon. Not the greatest choice.
Don't watch the diet: again, too many times I am the self indulging triathlete, I heard somewhere that each kilo is about 1min on a 40km ride.
Little late nights, many times I don't go for a full 7.5 hours of sleep (that's my magic number, but I many times fail to reach it)
Lunch at the desk: not great.

I aim to get better between now and the mid july, I've calendared a review date to see how things are progressing.

the day ended with a 10km backyard run, the legs were happy supporting me as long as I didn't try to go fast, so I took it easy.

Date: 7 June
Sport: Run
Time: 54min
Dist: 10.7km
Comment: recovery run

the long way home

Today was the final stage of our race, the Tour of Taranaki. Overnight it kept raining, but the morning was OK and we endured only a few showers through the race.
The day's race was 83km over some serious hills on the Tarata saddle. After yesterday's adventures, I was most happy to start and try to keep up with the bunch. It proved to be not a difficult task until the second or third downhill, when gusty winds shook me scared. I let them go and decide to solo my way home, about 40km.
I stayed a few hundred metres behind for another 10 to 15km and then I lost sight. Over the course I picked up some guys and girls who dropped, but none had any legs left so I pretty much rode through a wonderful countryside scenery over green ridges looking at sheep, and more sheep and some serious beef as well. Riding solo gave me time to think on the good and bad thing of this weekend experience.

The good

travelling with someone else is a big plus, we managed the logistics fantastically well.
the atmosphere was great all days
legs are feeling great and I can take the week of training with no problems, meaning that my fitness is good for this period.

The bad
weather gods weren't good on us, but that is a minor mishap
my descending skills needs a lot of polishing
gordo's new way of getting off the bike (he's OK now, tho)

What I learned

Being a roadie is quite different of being a triathlete, and there is a lot of trust on the other riders skills that goes into it. I thought I did trust many of the riders, but the bad weather proved me wrong.

That tour riding is soooo much fun, even with the crappiest weather in decades, back to back stages are tough, but is great mental prep for racing.

What I take
This race got me some good miles at high intensity, most of the stages I sayed around 85% of my heart rate, with a good max effort on day 2. It can't be bad for upskilling my bike leg for triathlons.
I'm rather proud to have finished my first tour.

Date: 6 June
Sport: Cycling
Time: 2.32
Dist: 74km
Comment: glad to finish, pissed I did not win!

Tour of taranaki, Day 2 - paying the price

Stage 3 - Strattford to Strathmore
there was not a lot of clientele in the lodge where we stayed, so the first night the host didn't turn the heaters on. Luckily for us, the Saturday night it was packed so we enjoyed some warmth on the night.
We woke up to a miserable morning. there was a weather warning for the region, which is not uncommon, though. It probably rained 60mm overnight and kept on raining for most of the day. After sign in, I sat and reflected on the situation. I was not in contention for any of the jerseys, I do have a couple of heavy months of training coming my way, and it was raining hard. So I decided to take it easy on the downhills, play a bit of chasing if needed and stay upright.
the course had a big hill in the middle that we had to do twice, plus three more small hills, I was OK with the bunch until halfway and pretty much until 5km before the second time on the big hill, but the pace started to go up and on a 3km downhill section I let the bunch go and chased for 5 minutes on my own with no luck. I sat and waited for others and we continued merrily to the end.
It was a decision that I don't regret, and I pay the price by finishing probably 2 or 3min off the pack.
My mate Gordon had to pay the price a nastier way, his backwheel slided downhill on the way back and he came off with some scratches and bruises. The good thing is that the bike is OK (just kidding, you never think on the bike in these situations) he managed to finish the stage and do the afternoon one. He's on his bed now, with some pain.

Stage 4 - Strattford - Stratford

The afternoon stage started two hours and a bit after we finished the morning one. I managed to come back to the room, get a shower, scoop some bacon and eggs (not the greatest, but I couldn't manage to do anything faster) and ride back to the start line.
It was an ondulating stage that went through the first 10km of the morning one and then on some rural roads with small bumps here and there. there were 8 railways crossings, I managed to spot them OK and my crotch is safe (ha ha ha).
Again, the last downhill was a race I did not want to take part of (speacially after hearing from Gordo). So I had to chase, but I realized I had no legs, and did the last 5km on a secondary group, doing most of the work as they were in worst condition that I was.

All in all it was a good experience, but the weather proved to be evil enough to deter me from doing any serious racing.
I don't have any photos, I could not manage, but I'll get some tomorrow.

Date: 7 June
Sport:  Cycling /// Cycling
Time: 113min /// 108min
Dist: 62km /// 50km
Comment: managed to stay upright, that is a big plus.

Tour of the Naki, Day 1

AM: TT 7.km (flat-ish)
We woke up with enough time to have a good brekkie and prepare for a cold day out. I went for muesli and two toasts, and double serves of coffee.

There was a race briefing and registration. I’m number 139.

From registration till my time of the TT there was plenty of time to kill so we hang around and went for a long warm up.

The TT was 3.5km out and back, with tailwind and downhill on the way in and the hard way the way back, which is hard enough when you are all anaerobic. I did a 12.40, which was a bit disappointing 22nd place in the grade. I don’t know why I just couldn’t fire my legs up on the last 2km.

Gordo did a 13.13, that got him on the top 10 of his grade.

PM 62km flat-ish

The afternoon race was 60km on a flat-ish course and I did better. It was all aggressive to start with, then it settled and then it went again for all the intermediate sprints and king of the mountain. I had a crack at one of the sprints but went too early and got passed by the expert. The finish was a mass sprint (‘bout 50 riders on a partially closed road) I managed to finish on the first dozen wheels, but I haven’t seen the results yet.

Back to the lodge for a pasta Bolognese and trying to call Nat.

Stay tuned

Date: 5 June

Sport: Cycling /// Cycling

Time: 12.40 /// 1.45

Dist: 7km /// 62km

Comment: first day of the tour, it’s all about conserving for the hills.

Tour of the Naki, Day 0

Got on the car at 4pm from Auckland. It took us 1 hour to get out of town and 4 more to get to Strattford. Strattford is a mini city in the south of the Taranaki region, farmlands and a huge mountain that dominates the landscape, the weather and the hydrology of this country (aka the king country).

I was OK with one bag and one big container, Gordo was a bit overprepared and brought all sorts of bas (one for sport clothing, other for casual clothing). On the last minute we decided not to bring windtrainer, which proved to be a mistake.

We had also planned to get to the lodge and eat there, but had to re think our plans and go for a good ole kiwi tucker from a small fry shop from a smaller village, 1 hour from our destination.

Got there late, went to bed and spent a cold night trying to get ready for the first big day. While putting the bike together I manage to stick a swiss army knife onto my tyres (by the way I didn’t have spares), and had to improvise with a superglue repair.

Date: 4 June
Sport: Swim
Time: 45min
Dist: 2.7km
Comment: Season’s best 400 (5.16)

Quick long awaited update

It has been a hectic week. When I started this log I was aiming to get a daily update, but, as always, things got in the way.


The good thing is that training has been great and I am now in R&R mode from my two stages of the tour of Taranaki.

Wednesday was all about getting the swim and the run out of the way the sooner the better.

Thursday was family day, as Nat is away on a tramping trip.

Date: 2 June
Sport: Swim /// Run
Time: 60min /// 100min
Dist: 3.2km /// 18km
Comment: last serious training. I’m on racing mode from now on.

Going the long distance

Ironman New Zealand sold out. It looks like it is the first time it sells so fast, only a couple of months after it went public. That kind of takes one big one off my bucket list for the short to medium term, which is good and bad. It is good because I don't have the presure to commit and do it and can focus on the world champs in september without worrying on building a huge mileage on the bike and run (specially on the run). It is bad because I'd love to give it a try to the big boy some time soon.
But I still haven't planned my next season, that is a must do for the next month, and I'll make sure I sit down with the boss (aka Nat) and we go through it.

Other than IMNZ, i'd love to race IM Brasil, close to home and with plenty of friend and family on the course or on the sides. It's a real shame that Argentina doesn't have a IM sanctioned event, it would be so cool. IM Brasil was last weekend and an Aussie bet the three best long distance athletes of south america. I reckon it is good to be kicked in the butt every now and then to fire a bit of anger in you, and make you work harder and harder so it doesn't happen again.

Last year I did a sprint race, and half way through the bike, coach went past me and gave me a telling off. I still remember how annoyed I was and how I made sure I kept him on sight to pass him as soon as I could.

On other occasion I was too sure I was going to kick ass in a shorter sort of swim run race and, again, I was passed by people that I did not know but was sure was not suppossed to pass me.

That anger can be a positive thing, if you know how to channel it.

I am a bit cautious that everything is ticking pretty well and something of the like may happen soon...

we'll see
It's a softer kind of week, my mate Gordo and I are doing this stage bike race and want to make sure I am fresh for it.

Date: 1 June
Stretch and core strength.