“So, Ironman Wales was my second Ironman in 5 weeks. If Rob (coach) had told me at the beginning of the season I would be racing both IMUK and IMWales I probably would not have believed him. The fact that I was doing IMUK was enough to get my head around but two??? Actually, having done them is not so bad. I imagine it’s a bit like childbirth (so I have heard)! Once it sinks in what an amazing thing you have achieved you soon forget about all that pain and look forward to the next.
The plan after IMUK was to recover for two weeks and then start about some quality training. The training was to be purely about quality. The plan was that as long as I could hit the numbers in training then IMWales was on. If not, then no race.
I felt like I recovered well apart from a little hip niggle, it started after the marathon at UK and transpired to be a bit of bursitis. My physio at Southgate Physio who is brilliant and always provides an excellent service used acupuncture, ultrasound and massage to treat the pain and after a few sessions it eased off. Just to make sure it healed I backed off the running and just focused on my swim and bike and the transition between the two which has been the single biggest issue I have had to deal with during my time in the sport. Everything was going to plan until last weekend. I had gone to my local lake to do a race simulation of the ironman swim in an attempt to find ways to prevent a reoccurring issue I have with muscle cramps in the swim or during transition. This consisted of 2 loops hard swim, race pace, exit run hard and another 2 loops race pace and then 1km run. As I exited the first two loops I felt cramp in my right leg. I completed the rest of the swim and ran 1km but then the cramp really started in both legs. I have never really replicated it in training before as invariably it only happens in races. I rested for the remainder of the day to relax the muscles but the following morning I went to my swim session with Tri London. We had quite a lot of kicking in the main set and my legs felt okay to start with but then the cramp started again. It was in both legs and I could hardly walk. After speaking with Rob, first thing he said was I don’t think you should race this weekend. This was a real blow and a reality check, but being an optimist I hoped I would be okay. The reason Rob said not to race is because previously when I have had a cramp like this it has taken a lot of strength out my legs and required a few weeks to recover. It happened at Antwerp70.3 a few years back and when I saw my physio at the time, she said it’s as if I had been in car accident as my legs were so traumatised.
I mainly rested the week in to Wales to ensure my legs recovered. Even though I was optimistic I was a slightly worried that I may get cramp again during the swim and as a result I probably would not even get to my bike as the swim to bike at Wales is so long. The cramp is still a mystery but we are slowly crossing things off the list that could cause it. I am working with Cliff Eaton from Compex and Mary Hardwick from Inspiretotri to help solve the problem. As a result we have identified some areas that require strengthening, which I have been working with Andy Bruce on, in addition to some specific muscle preparation techniques using the Compex device. We hoped that these and the lessons learned from the previous weekend would see me in good stead, but that has been the case every race for the last couple of years and success in that regard has been hit and miss to say the least.
I had heard the course for Wales was tough but having looked at the times from last year I could not quite understand why, especially given the run times. Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed when I found out that the run the previous year was two miles short and on the Friday when we drove the bike course I realised it certainly was a lot more lumpy than the profile implied; it was going to be a real challenge ……Pacing and bike nutrition would be crucial on a course like this.
Race day arrived promptly, 3.45am to be exact. I had my race day shake but I couldn’t stomach much else apart from my carb drink from Yoursportfuel. After the bike check and warm up completed it was shortly off to the swim start. Just like UK, the crowds were quickly forming to support all us athletes before the swim and on exit. Stood on the beach I was trying to stay calm and focus on the immediate task in front of me; i,e, swimming without getting a cramp. I always try keep my nerves and emotions in check by thinking over and over again about my swimming technique and how I plan to approach it. Before I knew it we were wading in to the shallows and then soon enough we were off. Once again, as in previous races, it was a civilised start. I have to say I am enjoying the pro starts! The first buoy seemed to take ages to get to. Once there I felt like I had a good rhythm. I felt relaxed. I took it easy on the swim and was hardly kicking, as was the plan. On the first exit I anticipated some cramp but there was nothing, excellent! Maybe we’re finally on to something. The second lap I felt good and I felt I could push a lot harder but I had to look after my legs. Before I knew it I was approaching the beach for the last time and as I came out the water I felt no cramp at all. I couldn’t believe it! I started to run slowly and still nothing. Amazing!! This was a big break through. Obviously I was still cautious and hence my snail pace running (for me) but it worked and it meant I could get on with the bike without any issues. I started the bike well, my legs felt good and found I could get in to aero position without any aching – compare that with Ironman UK where I had to stop and stretch out my glutes at the side of the road for 8 minutes! The plan here was to ease into the bike but I knew I had lost time on the swim and run into T1 so I needed to start pushing on straight away. The first loop was comfortable and I was pleased I was executing the plan – I had kept my overall power levels in check but I was also a little more aggressive in getting up to my pacing schedule than originally planned. I have started using a SRM head unit (c/o a borrowed unit from Jon Sharples of Train Sharp) rather than my 310XT and have found its 5 second average setting is perfect for me in controlling my power output and keeping it smooth. As I have got used to I am finding that I am able to keep to a power better rather than just averaging a number which means I end up either pushing a slightly higher wattage for the same energy expenditure or the target number more efficiently – being able to do this is invaluable on the early part of an ironman bike leg as you try to get in to a rhythm without hitting your valuable glycogen stores too hard. Then we were on to the hilly section, whilst none were long there were a few sharper inclines which mean you can do little but push big watts. The first of the loops was definitely challenging and I felt on top of it, but by the second loop I could feel my power starting to drop off. Looking back I didn’t have enough calories to compensate for the type of course and hills which was in part caused by me not getting through enough drink on the bike, I was probably about ~500cals off were I hard targeted to be. This just proves how important executing your fuelling strategy is – another valuable lesson underlined. On top of this, after the first climb on the second hilly loop I started to feel the road surface more so than before. At first I thought I was imagining it but as it became more pronounced I knew there was something wrong. I had a flat. I couldn’t believe it. I stopped and tried not to panic. I had pitstop, CO2 canisters and a spare tub to use. I started with the pitsop but forgot to deflate the tyre fully and ended up spraying foam everywhere, I just hoped enough had gone in to seal the puncture. I tried a CO2 to inflate it but no joy. All I could think of was replacing the tub and then use my last canister on that rather than risking it on the still flat, part sealant filled, tub. I started working on the tub but I couldn’t pull it off, a mixture of cold wet hands couldn’t get enough grip. A lovely local tried to help but I could not understand Welsh and I don’t think he understood me. By now about 8 minutes had gone by and luckily a marshal stopped and said he was needed elsewhere somebody would be able help me soon. He told me to move to the other side of the road as I would have a better chance of flagging someone down. I remember seeing lots of athletes ride past and my female competitors too. All that hard work on the bike trying to catch up felt like it was slipping away.(After speaking with Rob at the end of the race he said when I passed him at Tenby I was taking time out the girls in front). A male athlete stopped but couldn’t help. I told him to get on and get racing. Another marshal stopped. I asked if a race mechanic could help. He radioed and I heard that ten other people were waiting for help with punctures and other mechanicals. The marshal told me to use his hand pump and it started to fill up! Get in! I quickly grabbed my final CO2 canister which got the tub well on its way. I then used the pump again to get it up to a decent psi.
By this time 15 minutes had gone by, although it had felt like 15 hours, but at least I was on my way again. I was pretty angry, but I thought just get on with it as you never know what can happen, especially in an Ironman.
Fortunately, I was only approx. 10 miles from T2. It was such relief to get there without the tub going down again. I quickly transitioned and started the run. I was still pretty annoyed and I went out a bit harder than planned but I so wanted to regain some lost time. It was so good to see my family out on the course especially my little brother who has never watch me finished a race before. He came to watch me at Majorca70.3 but I couldn’t complete because of cramp after the swim. His support was great, lots of motivation shouts as I ran past. The first two laps felt great, the third was tough and on the forth I felt really empty. I could see the girls ahead but it was proving difficult to take any time out of them. They all looked so strong too, especially Lucy who every time I saw looked like she was absolutely flying – total admiration! Jo Carritt looked really strong too, well done! The support from everyone was unbelievable. It really helps when the going gets tough and the last 2 laps were. I felt like I was running in no man’s land, there was nobody to catch me and I didn’t feel like I could catch anyone in front of me. It was an odd feeling to be running but not really racing so early in the run and I found it hard to keep pushing. In the end I was just going through the motions and desperately wanted to finish just so I could stop. Eventually I crossed the line in 11hrs 21mins and the 7th Pro, way down on where I would have hoped to be, but once again I had learnt a lot along on the way which has been my main target of my first season as pro. Ultimately, if you had said to me at 7am that I would potentially work out how to prevent cramps in the swim but my race would be hindered by a puncture I would have taken that without a doubt – obviously as the race pans out your hopes and expectations increase and it was hard not to feel a little disappointed but still, for me, if we have worked out how to prevent the cramps then this race will have been a monumental step forward”.