Its Triathlon Season again!

Well, from a period of pre-season training where early morning swimming in winter, afternoon runs and weekend bike rides have become the norm, I am hungry to compete again!

My first race will probably be my longest race of the season and possibly the most significant to date. I was selected to compete in the World Long Distance Tri Champs, which will be held in Henderson, Nevada, USA on the 5th November. I have previously competed in both Olympic distance triathlon and duathlon at World Champs level, but this race poses a longer if not more difficult challenge.

The distances:

The Long Distance events change from year to year based on location and event organising. This year, the distances comprise of a 4km lake swim, 120km cycle and a 30km run. In comparison with current race distances, this race would slip in between a 70.3 distance and a full ironman. My strengths have always been more suited towards sprint and Olympic distance events, so this event will be pushing my threshold of speed and endurance...

Recently, the World Tri Champs finals were held in Beijing, with some notable results from several South Africans. The team that will be competing in the US will be some what smaller than the team represented in Beijing. I decided to compete in the longer distance for a few reasons... I had never travelled to the US before and thought this would be a great opportunity to see a new part of the world. I also thought that based on my season back home, if I was to train for a race of this distance, it would certainly benefit me with the distance races I would compete in afterwards, having had a good base of distance mixed with speed in between. So the decision became a simple one and my preparations have been aimed at a competitive result in the states.

The month of September has become a very significant month for me as not only is it the month of my birthday but also now the month of many wedding anniversary's for both my wife Carole and I in the future! Carole is a talented triathlete in her own right, placing in top 3 positions for her age in 70.3's and full ironman races. She has the edge over me in the ultra distances, I like to think have the speed on her!

So with 1 month to go, my preparations have reached a significant stage in my training. I look forward to keeping notes, tips, advice received and technical info at hand and look forward to sharing it with all of you who may be interested... Should any of you also be competing on the 5 November in Henderson, look me up - I would enjoy exchanging some stories with you...

Lastly, to my sponsors... there is no way that races of this nature would be achievable had it not been for you. I look forward to the new season and hope to do you all proud!

Chat soon!