Beauty....

With one week to go before Ironman NZ and well and truely into my taper period, which to date has gone well and has not affected me with the traditional "taper blues". Thanks to Florian at Erox for supplying my wheels, this will be my look for the race. I have ridden these wheels a few times in the recent weeks and have found them to be equivelant to my former disc wheel. The real test will ofcourse be on race day. However in saying this, if you are not comfortable with your wheels you will make excuses for not riding well on them.

THE BEAST...

I would also like George from Degani for supplying my race suit, so I will be in the Traditional Degani Black & White. With support from people like Erox & Team Degani, it does make competing at the pointy end a lot easier.

The legs are really starting to freshen up and with one more session with Jason, I know they will be in prime condition come race day. Carla & I fly out on Tuesday and no doubt will be inspecting the course to get familiar with it pre-race. I have been getting some really good advice from a few people who either have raced on this course before or have loads of experience in the caper.

I also re-discovered water this week and felt really good doing it. I have only had a handful of swims this year and have found that I have not lost to much fitness in the wet stuff!! Overall I am very happy with my condition and will definately giving it my all to grab that elusive "slot".

Finally, something that I have failed to do with previous races is to thank everyone who has helped me get into the shape that I am.

So, here goes:

Stormy; for all the texts at 4.30am confirming week day rides, and also making sure that every session has been quality and worth while.

Jas; for spending more time with me every weekend on the bike than what we do with our partners!! Also, helping me start to enjoy climbing hills, even if I am still no good at it!!! And no, I am not going to ever do a 24hour MTB race. Ofcourse, Bec his wife for cooking my pancakes post ride, and for TRYING to keep me quiet at 5am after 3 early morning coffees!

Trav & Arch; for really helping with my running, and dragging me to some undulating runs regulary to once again help conquer the hills.

And finally, Carla; When two people in the same household are training for the same significant event, it takes a lot of patience and strong will to both keep going strong and motivating each other.

So, after training solid since June '09, I am going to give it all at New Zealand like previous races. I have set my race plan, which will be slightly different to previous and will see if this pays dividends. Time will tell.

MTR-Racing is really taking off with some great early results and more and more interest from athletes who are interested in joining. Positive breeds positive!!

So with that and leaving ALL the excuses at the door, I might be able to blog once more pre-race but if I don't a in depth race report will be given post race with a heavy unfluence of the amber liquid!!

For now...

X-Man

Playing the averages..

After reveiwing my training this year I have found a common thread with my training. I train better with a consistent weekly average rather than trying to "overload" myself. This theory has been tried in the passed and I have trouble keeping consistent the following week/s.

So with this preparation, I have just trained consisently week in week out with no specific focus on "overlaod" or "strength" training. By doing this I have managed a consistent 20hours per week for the passed 7 weeks with a peak of 26 hours in early January and a trough of 16 1/2 hours in the first week February.

My training has consisted of weekly riding of 450k's average with some racing, some interval training and long rides of a weekend. Once again I peaked at 700k's in 7 days and a low of 303 k's. I have found my happy balance at 450k's and can find that I get that amount in without much hassle.

My running has averaged out at 70k's per week, probably a little lower than I originally planned, however is a lot more than I have done previously. The minor hiccup that I had with the broken crank put a stop to running for a few days at the time, but has had no negative effect on my overall training. Just consistent running has seen my runs time decrease and my overall run fitness improve dramatically. I attribute this to Trav & Archie pushing me not only to get throu all the runs, but also to keep running even on tired legs. (See blog training partners vs training program).

My swim, well this has been on the back burner for a while to concentrate on the other two disciplines. I am not to concerned about my swim, as like many others, my swim times don't vary too much with consistent training vs occasional training (1-2 min over Ironman distance.)

So with all that in mind, I feel like I am in a very good place at the moment and as I have been told and discussed in depth with a few of my training partners. My 20 hours is quality every time, no junk k's!! This I would rather as you feel the benefit every training session as opposed to feeling like you are wasting time.

The garmin has been a very good tool also as I can track every session and will be good to look over once New Zealand is done and dusted. This will be the only way that I can judge how my training time and quality has been.

Next week, as stated in my previous post will be taper time and swim time. I will be well aware of the taper blues this prep and now know how to handle them.

Will post again after the weekend.

For now...

X-Man

The countdown is on!!

Yes I am counting down until the race. I feel like I am in better shape now than what I was pre- WA for the same period. My running is coming along and my cycling is holding firm.

I am really looking forward to post NZ as I have been going solid now since June '09 and am ready for a break to let the hair down.

I would like to shout out a BIG thanks to Florian at EROX for supplying my race wheels for NZ. I look forward to enjoying the setup supplied and posting a fast time. I will post a picture soon of my bike complete with wheels which will propel me for the bike leg.

Also a thanks to George at Degani Cafe & Bakery for supplying my race kit and training kit along the way.

This weekend will be my last BIG weekend of training and then taper will kick in. Fresh legs will be a new thing for me!!!

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten all my training partners who will get a big mention in my next post when I have more time.

For Now...

X-Man