Pre-race update - European Long Distance Triathlon Championships

How’s it going?

So many people have asked me ,“How’s it going?”, so I thought it was time for a pre-event update. I’m writing this at race day minus 11!

While most of you will have spent the rare sunny days we’ve had in the past couple of months at the beach, or further afield on a relaxing fortnight’s holiday, my weekends have been filled with a pretty rigorous swim/bike/run training regime with some added strength and conditioning, plus gym work if I didn’t already have enough to do!  Many weekday mornings have started with a 5am alarm to set off on a bike or run session, and some days have seen another alarm at 8pm to prompt a set on the indoor bike or in my gym (aka my garage!).

Training has not been without its challenges though.

Amongst these sessions I’ve had a few long runs above half marathon distance, with the aim of running the second half faster than the first (or ‘negative splits’ as it’s known) – this is pretty tough anyway, but usually these take place after a two or three-hour bike ride, and later in the day to provide the same conditions I’ll be experiencing on race day.  On one of these runs at two miles in, my water hydration bladder burst leaving me soaked and having to turn around and go back to change my kit and re-stock with water.

There have been a LOT of open water swims, although this has built up my confidence massively of late, so I’m going into the event in a good place to tackle a mass swim start.  I have a couple of two-mile swims under my belt this summer, the final one of which took place last weekend in slightly choppy water, which certainly didn’t feel as though it was experiencing the usual summer temperatures!

I had the challenge of a ‘race simulation day’ which involved a 1 hour 30 minute lake swim, a technical bike push/pull session designed to work the legs really hard, and then a two-hour low heart rate run with some fast efforts thrown in to simulate the times during the race when fatigue will set in but you need to find a way to keep going. 

My toughest day and possibly darkest moment through this block of training was undoubtedly my 2km swim followed immediately by a six-hour bike ride.  Hampered by the fact I couldn’t access the lake until way past 10am, it was almost midday before I started the ride.  Whilst my coach planned this as a six-hour ride, I increased the mileage to round up to 100 miles – to make it only 12 miles short of race distance. 

Whilst this was a massive confidence boost when I finished, a short and sharp bit of motivation and a hug was needed at 75 miles from my very supportive partner when I was tired, cold, really struggling and ready to throw in the towel. He himself spent the afternoon meeting me at various pre-agreed pit stops with fresh water and electrolyte drinks, food, and on one stop, a very welcome coffee!

So, after several months of training the big event is next weekend and I’m hoping that I’m as ready now as I’ll ever be.  My GB Age Group team kit has arrived, which has been tried and tested on all three disciplines, and I’m sporting the Howden logo in recognition of the sponsorship I have generously been given.

But it’s not without nerves I am writing this. There is so much that can go wrong with an event like this.  I might panic in the swim or lose my goggles. My biggest fear is a mechanical problem with my bike that I can’t fix – one major tyre loss and I’m out, no matter how well I’m racing. I hope the Dutch roads have fewer potholes than those where I live! And if you don’t fuel and hydrate properly during the bike leg, then bonking on the run leg is entirely likely. Plus there are factors to make you want to quit, like cramp, chafing, stomach issues from too many energy gels, and sheer exhaustion when it starts to get dark.

Regardless of that though, I am so proud to be representing both Howden and my home nation in an event I love. Long distance triathlons are, in my view, one of the toughest things you can do – not just physically but mentally too.  The strength your body needs to be able to keep going over 140.6 miles is immense and demands months and months of training, commitment and sacrifice alone.  But the mental resilience and the sheer stubbornness to not give up is next level!  I’ve completed this distance once before and now as I start to taper, I hope that everything comes together on the day so that I can do everyone who has supported me proud.

The event is being screened on Triathlon.tv I believe, and I think there’s some form of live tracking on the day for anyone who wants to see just how long it’s taking me!  I’ll post an update after the event to let everyone know how it went.

Read part one and part two of my blog to find out how I've been preparing for my triathlon journey.