Pre-race plan vs Race Day
After many cancellations thanks to Covid, the Hardman Duathlon finally took place on Saturday 16th October 21. This is a sprint distance event 10k run, 40 k cycle, 5 K run and the first big event since the beast of Hardman a few weeks ago – just to recap that event was a XX
I was really looking forward to this race as I always preferred shorter and faster races. I was hoping for a good performance here after taking part in Hardman Full 6 weeks earlier. Unfortunately, I was carrying a small running niggle since hardman and so I had to stop running altogether for 4 weeks. Thankfully I managed to get it sorted with a combination of dry needling and strength training. However, this left me with only 2 weeks to build back up the miles before race day. I was very grateful that I could continue to train on the bike relatively pain-free, so I focused on that.Â
So, I designed a pre-race plan
This is how I planned to race the event, never leaving it to the day and hoping for the best 🙂
- Try to stay in zone 2/ low zone 3 for run 1, the 10km loop.
- Get on the bike and go like hell, Head down, Arse up!!!
- Empty the tank on the final 5k run.
So, How did the plan go??
- I managed to stay in zone 3 for the first 5km, but then it started rising with the undulating course. At this stage, I was racing and enjoying myself, so the plan was out the window, LOL ….
- Because of this effort, I suffered for the first 5 k on the bike, but thankfully got into my groove and started reeling in the faster competitors. I was very happy with a 34kph average as it was preety windy on the cycle, getting headwind both out and back. I lost a couple of minutes also due to having to stop to allow cattle to cross the road (Only in Ireland, lol).
- Exactly as planned. Emptied the tank. I pushed hard to catch about 6 lads that were ahead of me and I fell over the line in 18th place overall. I was delighted with this result as there was some great athletes in the race.
This was another great event put on by Alan from Hardman. However, it was very disappointing to see over 100 no shows, with over 340 on the waiting list. I’m not sure why this was but there is so much work that goes into organising these events that people who sign up (&pay!) need to commit to showing up!. Racing is a great way to test your training plan – reflecting on what is working well and where it could be adapted so that you see (& feel) the improvements. Thankfully we are seeing more and more events scheduled so I leave with this question ….ARE YOU READY FOR YOUR NEXT EVENT?? If you need help to create a tailored training plan or wondering how to rebab from a specific injury – give me a call and we can work together to achieve your sporting goals!
