Tri an Mhi Half Ironman Report

May wasn’t long coming around and I’m well into my training plan for the Hardman Iron distance triathlon in Killarney in August.

The graph on the left shows the training breakdown from January – May. Last weeks peak was a total of 13.5hrs training with over 7hrs on the bike alone.

All of my training is being done in Zone 2 of my heart rate which basically keeps the intensity very low but helps increase the volume without too many negative side effects. It took a long time to get used to as it means training slower than you would normally but after a few months I’m starting to see the benefits already.

This weeks training is one of the biggest volume wise – coming in at about 15.5hrs. It looks like:

Mon – 1.45hr swim, Tue – 2hr bike & 50min run, Wed – 1.5hr bike, Thur – 2hr run, 45min swim, Fri – 45min swim , Sat – 3hr bike, 30min run, Sun – 1hr bike, 1hr run. Thankfully I’ve a recovery week next week of “just” 8hrs!

The Tri an Mhi half ironman was booked to a) keep me motivated during the winter and b) to see how I was progressing with a final decision on the Hardman to be made after it.  I’d looked at this race in previous years and thought it was madness doing a half IM so early in the year but now see how beneficial it is if you’re looking to go longer later in the year. I didn’t really focus on training specifically for the race – just took 2 easier days training before it with 1 day recovery after so as not to impact too much on the overall plan. I had no idea what to expect in comparison to the Humbert Challenge 20 mths ago but the target was to have a better run – that would be the telling factor if training was paying off.

Arriving in Collinstown in Westmeath we were met with a very cold and dull morning. The lake didn’t look inviting at all and was the leg I was most apprehensive about – purely due to the water temperature (approx 10^oc)  and the fact that I hadn’t yet managed to get an open water swim in due to the cold weather we’ve had. The wind just seemed to keep picking up and more and more white horses were appearing towards the middle of the lake and making the 9^oc air temp feel much lower.

Registration and set up went fine with no major hitches – just the usual nerves! Everyone was just trying to keep as warm as possible and as it seemed to get colder the prospect of the swim being shortened or even cancelled became more real. Everyone was leaving the wetsuits until the last minute and finally an announcement was made that we would be swimming – but a shortened 750m course. I think everyone was slightly relieved and based on the next few hours I feel it was the right decision.

Everyone slowly made their way to the slipway and gingerly made their way into the water – it was freezing but not as bad as I expected! After a few dunks to get the feel of it the claxon went off. Right from the start I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be my best swim – I just felt restricted in the wetsuit and crowded in the water.The chop didn’t help and had to adjust my breathing with affected my stroke and swimming straight! I recon I did the full 1900m from all the zigzagging I did! Was out of the water in 15.14 – slow even by my own standards!!

Only thing I remember about T1 was the difficulty in putting on my jacket over wet arms – apart from that don’t remember much but from time comparison it wasn’t too bad.

Out onto the bike and settled into a comfortable rhythm straight away. I’d deliberately left my HR on alert so that I wouldn’t go too hard which had affected me in a couple of previous races and I think it helped. The 2 loop course was pretty tough – constantly rolling country roads which seemed to suited me – I was comfortable on all the hillier sections and made ground which I promptly lost on the flatter sections. The bike leg is still my weakest leg but the gap is coming down slowly but I still felt like everyone had passed me! My average pace for the first loop (approx 47km) was 30km/hr which is above all my training rides but I still felt comfortable. Once the 2nd lap started so did the rain which never stopped until I got off the bike.  All I could think was poor Lorna waiting with Eabha and my Mam & Dad who I spotted finishing the first lap – it had to be harder on them waiting around in that! My legs still felt good but I had pretty much no feeling in my legs from the cold. It was just a matter of getting to T2 in one piece now. I finished the 94km in 3hr 13 and an average speed of 29.1km/hr – again above what I had expected and really happy with that. Nutrition was one area I’ve been focusing on to get right for August and I stuck to my plan to take in approx 300 calories / hr on the bike. Bars went down better than the gels towards the end of the bike so need to keep that in mind.

T2 was an experience! I had to get help undoing my helmet buckle as my hands were so cold and then doing laces was interesting!! Put on a dry(ish) jacket for the run, packed a couple of gels and headed off.

Straight away I felt good on the run and struggled to keep my pace down at the start. Passed the 5km mark in exactly 25mins and was a bit concerned that I’d gone out too fast. I was actually enjoying it and felt great. Took a gel at the 8 & 14km mark – not sure if I needed them but I’d planned to so I stook with it. Legs were still feeling really strong so decided to up the pace for the last few km’s. Finished the run in 1hr48 and a slight negative split (2nd half faster than the first). Comparing the run with my previous half IM it was 26mins quicker which I was delighted with.

Finished in 5-24.30 – 107 out of 238 starters (approx 30 DNF’s)

Overall really happy with how the day went, the course was tough and challenging but enjoyable, the marshalls were excellent throughout – even in the worst of the conditions and the set up was really well organised. I felt solid throughout the race and really felt that the training is paying off. Nutrition went as well as could be expected and I’m happy that it’s the right way to go at the moment. Could possibly have pushed harder on the bike but not sure what effect that would have had on the run and should have pushed harder further out on the run. Heart rate data was good on review and I recovered pretty quick after the race although I’m still feeling it in my legs during this weeks training!!

Only fault I’d have with it was that as the National Championship race there was very little atmosphere created around the event –  no equipment displays, only one tea/coffee van (which ran out!), nothing for kids / families etc. I know the weather was terrible but I’d have expected more from Triathlon Ireland in this respect.

Once again – a huge thanks to Lorna and Eabha for putting up with me on this journey – it’s just as hard on them and there is absolutely no way I could do it with them. Was great having them there at the finish along with Mam and Dad.

Only 13 weeks left until the Hardman in Killarney and still a lot of work to do but after last weekend I’m confident that I’m on the right track. Roll on August!!