Training in Canada

I arrived in Penticton, Canada 5 days ago. My host and friend, Cathy, has welcomed me back into her home and I have settled in nicely. Her generosity has made it possible for me to train in an amazing part of the world. Plenty of beautiful scenery, hills, mountains and trails. Despite rain this afternoon the weather has been mid 20s and the bike short line on my legs is increasing!! The forecast for next week looks promising too. It took me a few days to get used to the time difference, I'm now 15 hours behind home. Today marks 4 weeks until the start of my "3 x 70.3s" and so the next 3 weeks will be head down. I feel extremely lucky to be able to do this with out having to think about work..... sleep, train, eat, sleep, train, eat...... here I go!

ITU Asian Long Course Champs

 It was the ITU Asian Long Course Championships on Sunday, a 3km swim, 80km cycle and 20km run. The race was a point-to-point race in the Gangwon Province. It started at Samcheok Beach with a 2 lap course. The water was cold, 16°C. It was a beach start with a deep drop off as soon as you hit the water. We had to run up onto the beach and re-enter the water to complete the second lap. I felt like I swam ok, coming out 7th.

The bike course was challenging. It had some flat sections, some down hills but mostly up hill. Through the 80km we climbed from sea level to 1200ft. There were 2 major climbs in the bike, each approximately 10km. The first came at about the 50km mark and the second for the final 10km into transition. The ride took us from Samcheok beach through some small villages and up a mountain to Taebaek. During the ride I passed a couple of girls and a couple passed me so I got off the bike still in the top 10.

 

The run started on an athletics track at the Taebaek training centre, followed by an undulating section on the road and onto a track that cut through the mountain up to the finish line at the High1 Resort (race’s major sponsor). I started the run with a little stitch but it soon subsided and I was running well. I passed two of the girls that had passed me on the bike and had a good rhythm going. The track was challenging terrain, rocky and muddy in some sections. Unfortunately I took a wrong turn about 14km in (I wasn’t the only one! There was a sign with an arrow the same as had been at some previous points on the track and I assumed it was pointing the way but it wasn’t, no course marshal either!) I’m not sure how much time I lost but enough to take me from 8^th to 11^th. The last part of the course was probably the hardest, a 10% incline for just under a kilometer to the finish line. I finished in 11^th place, a little disappointed to be outside the top 10 but a worthwhile experience.

 

My International race season begins

I flew out of Australia early Thursday to start my 9 week international race season as part of my build up to the 2009 ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Championships to be conducted in Perth, WA 25th October.

My first race is the 2009 ITU Asian Long Distance Triathlon Championships to be held in Gangweon, South Korea this Sunday. The event consist of a 3km swim/80km Bike/20km run (double “Olympic” distance).

This weekend’s Asian championships is race 2 of the ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Series and I am currently ranked no. 3 in the world following my 3rd placing at the ITU Oceania Championships (Huskisson, NSW) back in February.

A strong result this weekend could see me jump to World No. 1 in ITU World Long Distance Rankings! Fingers crossed!

Following this race I will base myself in Penticton, Canada for 4 weeks of heavy training before doing 3 x Ironman 70.3 races over 4 weeks in USA & Canada.

I will then return back to Australia for my final race preparation for the 2009 ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Championships including the Gold Coast Half Ironman Triathlon in early October.

My- 2009 World Championship Race Schedule
14 June – 2009 ITU Asian Long Distance Triathlon Championships – 3km Swim/80km Bike/20km Run
www.triathlon.or.kr/en/en_info_meeting/daily_view.asp

19 July – Vineman Ironman 70.3 Triathlon (California, USA) – 1.9km swim/90km Bike/21km Run
www.vineman.com

2 August – Ironman Calgary 70.3 (Alberta, Canada) – 1.9km Swim/90km Bike/21km Run
www.ironmancalgary.com

16 August - Ironman Lake Stevens 70.3 (Washington, USA) – 1.9km Swim/90km Bike/21km Run
www.lakestevens703.com

4 October – Gold Coast Half Ironman Triathlon (QLD, AUS) – 1.9km Swim/90km Bike/21km Run
www.usmsport.com/gchim/index.html

25 October – ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Championships (Perth, WA) – 3km Swim/80km Bike/20km Run
www.ldworlds.org.au


Stay tuned for updates on my travels.

Thankyou so much to all of my fantastic sponsors. Without your support I could not be here. Thanks to CBD Cycles & Giant Bicycles, Fairbrother Construction, 2XU, Brooks, GU Energy, The Training Fix, Engine & Total Performance Sport.