Noosa triathlon photos

Here are a selection of photos from the weekend.

Noosa triathlon

I've spent the weekend here in Noosa covering the Noosa triathlons and multi-sport festival for www.firstoffthebike.com which has been fun and an interesting experience. The following is my race report plus some videos from the weekend. Photos are in a different blog post.

Noosa Triathlon
The 29th Noosa triathlon, the second largest in the world, took place under perfect conditions on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. With a competitive field in both men’s and women’s sides the competition was shaping up to rival the weather with particular interest on whether Courtney Atkinson could win his fourth Noosa title in a row – and how Chris McCormack would fare – along with new women’s Ironman 70.3 World Champion Melissa Rollison stepping down in distance to challenge world fourth ranked Emma Jackson over the Olympic Distance race.

Mens Race
A field of 35 men started...with the usual ‘creeping’ on the line...but it wasn’t until the turnaround buoy where the pack really split up, with uber swimmer Clayton Fettell leading the group, and McCormack being dropped to eventually come out a minute behind. The leading pack of 15 or so athletes, including all the main contenders, hit T1 in a storm and started the ride together with no one giving an inch.

The group remained in tact up Noosa hill, and on to the turn around point at Cooroy where it looked like it would come down to a running race. But it was here that the heat was turned up and the race ripped apart. Doing a lions share of the work, James Seear was putting even known cyclist Fettell to the sword and worked the group over with only David Dellow, Paul Matthews and Fettell able to keep up – the rest of the group was dropped, including race favourite Atkinson.

The lead four had opened a large gap by T2 – well over a minute – and after a small change up in transition Matthews led the group, closely followed by Seear, Fettell and Dellow a few seconds later after a slow transition. Money was being put on Matthews to maintain his great US form and hold his lead, but Dellow had other things to say and pulled up to Fettell and Seear by 2km, and then into the lead by 4km. From there on he maintained his lead and showed his excitement well before the finish line, being the first local athlete in the history of the event to win, with Mathews coming in for second and James Seear running on for third. McCormack came in 101th and Atkinson faded to 14th.

Marking a highlight in his career, Dellow was ecstatic with his win but it only marks a lead-up race for the ITU World Long Course championships in one weeks time, and the long term goal of IM Melbourne, Frankfurt and Kona in 2012.

Women’s Race
A smaller field of 13 women took to the water, with a mix of short and long course athletes, including two stars of the ITU World Championship Series in Emma Jackson and Kate McIlroy. The field quickly split apart and Jackson opened a break that she held until T1, being clear of the field through T1 and onto the bike. A small group lead by Kiwi Kate McIlroy followed soon after, but it was not until 2:40 mins later that Melissa Rollison came into T2, leaving a lot of work ahead for the bike leg.

Emma Jackson maintained her lead over McIlroy in the 30-40sec range to the turn around, and on the return. But as she neared T2 it would be Rollison who was the BIG mover through the field and as they dismounted she was right on the heels of Jackson, with McIlroy 40 sec later. Demonstrating her ITU experience, Jackson was quicker through T2 and led onto the run by 5 sec with Rollison charging hard behind her, setting up a great run race.

Rollison closed the gap to Jackson by the 2km point, after which they ran in close contract until 4km where Rollison put in a surge that cleared her away from Jackson, into the lead for the first time in the race. The day was heating up but Rollison was strong and cleared away from Jackson, and held her lead to the finish, improving her fourth placing last year with an outstanding win. But rather than gloriously breaking the tape, a slip right before the line sent Rollison head first under the tape, sprawled on the ground on top of the finish line wondering what happened. However there was no doubt that her star rose even higher today, leading Emma Jackson over the line by 44 sec, and McIlroy in third.

Showing the strain of the effort, Rollison was in great distress and carted off for medical attention...a stressful end to an otherwise spectacular season. One wonders what she might be capable of if she was able to improve her swim to the ITU level, but regardless a stellar career has commenced and we are sure to be hearing more of Melissa Rollison in the future.

Men
David Dellow – 1:46:36
Paul Matthews – 1:47:01
James Seear – 1:47:42
Clayton Fettell – 1:47:49
Ryan Fisher – 1:48:14
Byrce McMaster – 1:48:48
Clark Ellice – 1:49:21
Ryan Sissons – 1:50:04
Joseph Lampe – 1:51:04
Chris McCormack – 1:51:37

WomenMelissa Rollison – 2:00:25
Emma Jackson – 2:01:09
Kate McIlroy – 2:01:46
Felicity Sheedy-Ryan – 2:04:03
Matilda Raynolds – 2:08:28
Belinda Granger – 2:08:56
Ellie Salthouse – 2:09:01
Lisa Marangon – 2:09:30
Tara Prowse – 2:10:40
Chloe Turner – 2:10:51
Courtney Atkinon's bike video

Emma Jackson's bike video

Melisson Rollinson's Noosa finish

Racing Machines

A well known sports nutrition company has a memorable print ad which features a photo of a famous, sponsored athlete alongside the words "Train, train, train, train, train, train. Race. Train, train, train...". The point being that these guys spend a lot of time training, and choose their races carefully with the intention of racing well when they do. By implication, you wouldn't say they over race!!!

On the flip side, there are athletes in a range of sports who seem to race almost weekly, especially if you average out their events across the year. In particular, cyclists can go through periods of racing multiple times a week, not to mention team sport athletes who must front up each week to perform throughout a season - surely a tough task. Nevertheless, these folks face up to competition without blinking, like it's part of their DNA.

Those contrasts don't necessarily relate only to elite, professional athletes since the same tendencies permeate through to amateur athletes, also - I'm sure you can think of friends who seem to be always training, and other friends who jump into any race they can. Certainly, in my area keen multisport athletes can find some kind of race on almost every day of the week during summer, let alone just on weekends, to satisfy every desire for an adrenalin fix. Just don't worry about the impact on the rest of your life!!

But are these racing machines onto something that the lesser raced athletes could tap into? They seem to be primed (almost) every time they line up, and even allowing for some performance blips they seem to consistently go pretty well at whatever they tackle. The reality is that the answer is not straight forward, because not only does it depend on the individual but also on goal races, longevity, attitude and more. Let's look a little more at it all...

Firstly, this is not a discussion about extremes - racing a lot or a little - because like everything there is a middle ground, which itself is not clearly defined!! Also, the amount you race can vary across the year, from off-season to peak season, or the lead-up to goal race. There's a lot to be said for/about each phase.

The background for racing is a base level of fitness - this is an assumption. Another critical consideration is the sport you'll be doing the racing in. Swimming is easy on the body, and running is hard on the body. This difference will impact and limit the amount of racing you can do. Typically cyclists can / do race a lot because it is low weight bearing. This is all obvious so the definition of "racing a lot" is relative to the sport(s) you do.

Racing a lot has many benefits, from the skills and tactics you develop and refine, to the top-end race fitness that comes from the associated intensity for nothing really replicates the effort of a race. Then there's the adrenalin, enjoyment and excitement of being in the heat of action. The downsides of racing a lot is that you need to spend time recovering to race again rather than training, and thus over time can experience a net loss in some aspects of fitness - you can only sustain high frequency and high performance for a limited time. Also, there is cumulative fatigue, physical and mental, from continual racing, especially if you put yourself on the line with each outing.

Going back to the key assumption we made earlier - the need to have a base level of fitness - is perhaps the key reason why an athlete might not race a lot. This is especially the case the longer the goal races are since training for a marathon or IM will necessarily require you to devote successive weeks putting together consistent training. The problem with this approach is that it is easy to forget what racing is like, and the mental and physical skills needed to perform. Training can be a comfort zone, and sometimes the more entrenched you get in this comfort zone the harder it is to bring yourself out in order to actually achieve the performance goals you set.

In this context, racing too little is a negative since even occasional racing reminds you about the end point of a training phase. Nonetheless, some people just enjoy training for the joy of being fit and the challenge of seeking variation in training.

On the other hand, racing a lot can be used as a key tool to prepare for key races, to use the benefits we mentioned before of developing top-end fitness so that you're primed for goal races when they arrive. However the value of racing as preparation will depend on the length of your goal race - think specificity - eg, a 5km run race is of limited value in the immediate lead-up to a marathon. But for short course events, lead in races are ideal preparation and with a base level of fitness can and will bring you to physical and mental peak...although the timing and combination of lead in races should be carefully considered.

But what of the people who do race endlessly? Sure, they are well-oiled in the routine of racing, and likely drunk on the atmosphere of an event, but I suspect they are perhaps missing out on what could be a breakthrough performance because they don't really allow themselves the chance to focus on any particular race, and they carry residual fatigue from race to race. Plus, their fitness will have rather narrow range defined by the style of racing they do, which may not be a bad thing, but would likely be filled with weaknesses in their capabilities due to relying on racing as training.

So it really is the middle ground that is most effective amount of racing to do. Vary the frequency, length, format, tactics and intensity of racing throughout the year to suit your training and fitness progress towards you goal events. Choose races with an objective and then set out to achieve them - what you take from a race is not just the end result, but the process to achieve that result. All this means that sometimes you might race a lot, and other times you might not. The excitement of racing will be there when you do, and you'll allow yourself the opportunity to focus on each race and perform to your potential.

NY marathon...on again, off again, on again, off again...

It's been a rocky road since my previous running update last month, talking about redundant body parts when my pesky little plantaris tendon - the "monkey muscle" as it's sometimes referred to in the medical world - was causing me grief. Why oh why, and not two months out from the NY marathon. It seemed like such a silly little injury, but as they say, anything that keeps you out of a major competition is a major issue. How true that is!!

So to cut a long story short, I'm out of the NY marathon (again) this year, finally cancelling my entry last week but in reality the writing had already been on the wall for several weeks. I've accepted it and moved on...but talk about frustration and disappointed!!! Words could not explain my torment and exasperation. But the sun still came up, the birds were singing and life went on...as it always does.

Often it's only when you finally let go of something you've been holding on to - for me it was the dream of running the NY marathon - that you realise you were actually building it up to be a much bigger deal than it actually is. We're not talking life and death here, just the trivial indulgence of running. In looking back I was obsessing about it all...the race, my injury, recovery, will I / won't I be able to run, the impact on my goals...and it was causing unending grief and frustration. So as much as I'm really, really, really disappointed not to be going I'm also relieved that the decision is made and Ms A won't need to endure my grumpiness that went with the situation.

But back to the details of the injury...

In my last update I'd just had a cortisone injection into the sheath of the tendon, where I first learned about the uniqueness of the plantaris...lucky me!! After 6 days of rest / no running I started running. It was OK, but not great. Trusting in the effect of the cortisone I kept on running, and it didn't really get any better or any worse; the trend seemed to slightly be towards being improved. Then I went for a longer run, and at about the 1 hour mark it got a bit worse...but I kept running. Eventually it got much worse - I think I undid the good of the treatment and was back to square one. A dumb, newby mistake.

So back to no running and almost a week later - now 4 weeks post initial injury - I had another cortisone. 8 days later I went for a run and 90 seconds later stopped, injured, and walked home. NY marathon was 4 weeks away and I was seriously running out of time, literally.

As luck would have it, the husband of one of Ms A's best friends is a very good orthopaedic surgeon, Dr T, specialising in foot and ankle. Although I'd contemplated cutting myself open and snipping the tendon I hadn't...just. But Dr T could do it properly, and he generously slotted me in 4 days later to once and for all get rid of the problem. I was relieved, even though it would 100% rule me out of NY, but would be back running within a week or so...pain free!!

Then something amazing happened. I had a work trip to Perth and while at the gym that evening thought I'd hop on the treadmill to confirm what I already knew...but to my surprise, I ran for 20 mins!!! How could that be? The next morning I ran for 45 mins and was in heaven...and NY had gone from < 50% chance to > 50% chance. The surgery was put off, and my spirits lifted.

But that didn't last long. Only 3 days later during a run that felt great, I got to the 30 min mark and things went bad. However, although it was in almost the same spot, the symptoms felt strangely different to the existing tendon problem - this was more like musclar knotting and tension in my calf, adjacent to the plantaris tendon. I can deal with muscle issues, I thought, as I hobbled home. At least I thought I could deal with muscle issues...

2.5 days later I thought it had loosened and eased, went for a run and got 30 seconds this time before turning to walk home. That was a make-or-break run, and since I was broken NY was back off...again. 4 days rest, physio, self massage and I tried another run which went multiple times better than the last one. Three times better, actually, meaning 90 seconds before it started to tighten up. It was like being whacked again, but this time seeing the whack come towards me. I was getting sick of walking back.

So here I am now after seeing my doctor this morning - she's not sure what it is since I'm symptom free now and really does feel like it has eased. The lumpiness where the knot - or spasm - was has softened and gone down. We're going to get an MRI scan done, and also to try a little run...I'm hopeful but realise the recent pattern of trying hasn't been good. Wish me luck...

Failing Gracefully

What's the only thing as bad as a DNF? A DNS. I know because I've done both in the past 6 weeks...failing on two counts and on two occasions. Not to mention another DNS in a goal race in a couple of weeks time. Epic fail. Suffice to say, it wasn't meant to be like this...

This article is not a tale of my woes...I've done enough sulking...but about when and why a DNF or DNS is actually a smart move. Although my issue was a pesky little injury (yet anything that keeps you out of goal competition is major issue) there can be a myriad of things that result in DNF or DNS.

No one takes the decision to DNF lightly, especially if it's a goal race / race you've travelled to do it / you're going well in / you're pride is strong / other reasons. Pulling out causes no end of torment, which is probably why people usually choose a spot where there's few people around to step off the road where only fellow athletes will see you. There's the hassle of getting back to race central, questions from friends about why, and more. Sometimes it would seem easier to just finish, but that's not the point. To DNF means a conscious action was taken for what was a valid reason at the time...so let's consider some of those reasons.

Perhaps the most common reason for DNF is injury, when the decision is usually obvious and is made for you. However some injuries allow you to keep on competing, but with painful consequences afterwards where only you can make the decision if it is worth it. If it is a big, goal event with some downtime scheduled afterwards then perhaps continuing could be acceptable. But what if the injury is compromising / hindering your performance, regardless of how big the race is, would you still push on? There are no black and white rules in this regard, but I'd suggest it would be prudent to think beyond the finish line and what competing with an injury - a high stress situation on your body - would actually mean once the excitement of the event has passed, usually by about Tuesday, and how you would feel then. Sore and sorry, with no magic potion to fix you up. Make sure you can fight another day by acting sooner rather than later.

Other than injury, another reason for DNF could be fatigue. In most cases there is little excuse or reason for being fatigued going into a race. A race is a race, afterall, and is worthy of the respect of making sure you can give it your best shot of achieving the goals you set for it. Nonetheless, things don't always conspire to allow that which is when it is worth considering the value of continuing. On one side is the experience of being in a race, and learning from it about how your body responds while fatigued. On the flip side is the value from saving your body so it can perform to it's potential on a day when you've got your 'A' game in hand.

The other factor in DNF'ing due to fatigue is what other people will think...but question if that is really important to you, or if they really care beyond curiosity. One problem in pulling out from a race once, is that your mind now accepts that this is OK to again, and possibly again. So you need to only use the fatigue related DNF card very sparingly.

Further factors in people DNF'ing tend to be emotional, which is a container for all range of matters that may be affecting you - stress, family, work, etc. No one will truly understand your emotional state, and thus no one is any position to question your actions. Do what you need to do to manage your situation.

Sometimes you hear of pros who DNF saying "it just wasn't my day", and that they're better to line up again soon in order to further their professional standing. This action divides observers who on one hand say they're soft and should tough it out, versus those who respect that their careers are short anyway, are are better off seeking opportunities where they can succeed. I guess we should walk a mile in their shoes before casting opinion.

DNF'ing is an inglorious exit from a race when things aren't going right, whereas a DNS is pre-empting a forecast poor day. Often the same factors come into play as for DNF, and at least you can avoid the spotlight that a DNF shines by not lining up in the first place. The only downside of this is missing an opportunity to see what might have been once the gun goes...lots of people have surprised themselves by just starting and seeing what happens. In deciding about a DNS or not make sure you're only being informed - and not influenced - by others. After all it is you that is facing up to the event, not them.

Whether you DNF or DNS, one things I've learned from coaching athletes is that they're always thinking ahead to what might be next time they can line up - they're optimists. So if you DNF or DNS then make sure you understand why you did so, and then look ahead to the next race and an opportunity to correct the situation. For as Muhammad Ali said, "Inside of a ring or out, ain't nothing wrong with going down. It's staying down that's wrong.".

Changing Plans

I often write about the value of having a plan for how you approach your sporting goals, which provides you with direction and motivation. But a wiser person once said "When you go into battle, have a plan. But then expect the unexpected and be ready to change your plan."

While sports is not necessarily a "battle", as such, the sentiment quote holds well for sports both during preparation and execution of a race. Things rarely ever go perfectly to plan, so it is the people who see the opportunity in change that come out the best. At risk of overdoing the quotes in this article..."When the winds of change are blowing, some seek shelter. Others build windmills."

There's all kinds of reasons for changing plans, whether you do it on your own accord or it is "forced" upon you. In this article I'll look at the forced plan changes and some strategies for coping with them, whether it's because of family / work pressure, bad weather or an injury. While they are annoying there is usually something you can do to make the best of the situation.

Firstly, let's classify changes into micro (1-7 days impact/duration), moderate (1-4 weeks) and macro (more than 4 weeks). The reason for these groupings is that the approach you take will differ. What makes things trickier is when an interruption begins as micro and extends to moderate (or macro) - knowing the length of the interruption in advance helps a lot, otherwise you'll be changing plans blindly on the fly. This is often the case with injuries.

So let's look at each grouping and the kind of things you should consider:

Mirco
In the grand scheme of things, impacts of these nature are a blip on the radar. There's a golden rule of training that says if you miss a session to never try and make it up by slotting it in elsewhere, which is quite correct. However, if you're faced with missing 1 or more sessions in a week then it is possible to re-plan your week to re-prioritise the sessions you can do in order to get the key sessions done, which themselves may need to be re-designed depending on the nature of the sessions.

It's hard to describe in writing, but in essence top priority should still be your long ride / run (of some length) even if every other session is missed. After that, look to include the priority 2 sessions as identified by your coach, allowing adequate recovery between all sessions. The details of sessions may need to be changed (eg, shorter) to fit into the available time, or sometimes (depending on the circumstances) just training can be more important than the details. You're actually making successive mini-plans as circumstances allow.

Even if you miss a whole week of training the impact is greater in your head than on your body. In fact, a week off can be a blessing in disguise. The golden rule holds true, however, in not trying to double up sessions to fit in ones that you've missed...you should still view sessions in the context of week, and not individually.

Moderate
Interruptions of 1-4 weeks will, by necessity, have a bigger impact on your plans, and possibly your goals. During a longer interruption the key is to just do what you can, where the point about just training being more important than the details being even more relevant.

If your interruption is due to injury then look at the training options that you can do. Cross-train, do complementary core strength work, and more. Hopefully you'll have a timeline for return to training, and will need to adjust your training thereafter to allow for the break you've had, and your goals ahead. While injured you need to be very adaptive to the circumstances of your injury, what it allows you to do and when you're able to get back into routine.

If your interruption is due to other circumstances then the likely constraint will be time availability, and probably also training equipment and venue access. In this case your training plan will need to adapt to the scenario to do the best you can. If circumstances allow, try to keep some kind of routine and structure within the constraints or otherwise just train. Be conscious of the combined stress of everything you're dealing with, in combination with the physical training stress.

Following a moderate interruption you'll need to plan for your return to routine, and not just assume you'll pick up where you left off. This will depend on the circumstances of the interruption.

Macro
A long-term interruption requires a long-term view to the impact on your plans, in particular for things like planned events and the feasibility of doing them. Compared to a moderate interruption, on a macro scale the key difference is that you need to accept the situation and be patient about your return whereas often when you're out for 1-4 weeks your goal is to maintain what you've got in terms of fitness so your return is as swift as possible.

On a macro scale you accept that you're reasonably going back near to square 1 once you get going again, and thus your plans need to reflect that. This is not to mean that you can "let yourself go" during the interruption, but that you need to be prepared to invest significant time and patience into your return. It's a state of mind and perspective shift.


Changing plans is not a sign of failure in your plan, but rather than you're responding proactively to the scenario rather than working against the reasons for the change of plan. You need to work with it and not against it and realise that there are always multiple ways to deal with an interruption, and that the path you choose should be based on what is the best direction for you at that time. Just do the best you can in the circumstances.