Valencia is a city I know well. My in-laws live one hour to the south. One of my regular training partners is from the city and we’ve been there a few times for triathlon camps. I also have good knowledge of the marathon having done it for the first time in 2021. That was also my first ever stand-alone marathon. Previously I’d alone ever done then within Ironman races. My goal then was to see what I could do if I trained solely for a marathon. Ultimately I came in with a 3:15:51. Safe to say I was happy but having set a benchmark I knew I’d want to go faster. Would I be able to do it in 2022?
Continue reading “Valencia marathon 2022 review”NNormal Tomir early review
When Kilian Jornet moved on from Salomon there were plenty of rumours as to what he had planned. Well we didn’t have to wait long. The news that he was going to be launching his own trail running shoe and apparel company broke in March this year. NNormal was born (with a little help from Camper)!
Fast forward a few months and in September we saw Kilian winning UTMB in Chamonix wearing his own shoes. In this case he was using the Kjerag, the company’s max performance shoe for racing. Not long after that, the launch of the website and the news the Tomir would be joining the line up. The Tomir is billed as “the only shoe you need for just about every outdoor activity“. Kilian says that runners should be able to get well over 1000km from them. Given the price for an everyday shoe, this statement better hold up. So what else was there to do other than put in my pre-order and wait for the postman.
Continue reading “NNormal Tomir early review”Let’s try this again
When I started this blog a few years back the aim was to share my experiences of training and racing. Let’s just say that after a promising, if not prolific start, I soon lost my way and the updates were non-existant.
It’s not a case of me stopping the training and racing. I have done so much over the last few years, even with the mild inconvenience of a global pandemic. In fact that actually gave me the opportunity to try a few other things given the paucity of races, especially in 2020. Have a look at my updated results page to see what I’ve been doing
Continue reading “Let’s try this again”2019 – what‘s on the menu?
Having sporting goals is a great way to motivate to yourself, especially during the dark winter months here in the northern hemisphere. For some people these will be about winning certain races or qualifying for world champs. For others it could simply be about getting up off the sofa and doing the local park run on a Saturday morning.
As we’re only just over halfway through January I think it’s still ok to talk about my goals for the coming year. For some of them I’ve already got hard targets in mind Whilst for others they are a little softer in nature. Some are specific to the races I’ve entered, the others are more performance related. Obviously achieving the second should help me to reach the first. Continue reading “2019 – what‘s on the menu?”
Challenge Roth 2018 – the return
Just over a week has passed since completing Challenge Roth for the second time. Anyone who has raced there knows just what an amazing spectacle it is. You’ll also know just how difficult it is to get across in words the scale of the occasion. I’ll give it a try though.
Can’t Swim, Can’t Ride, Can’t Run: My Triathlon Journey from Common Man to Ironman by ANDY HOLGATE
I picked up (actually I downloaded) this book during the family summer holidays in Italy. I’m somewhat ashamed to say it was the first book I’d read in a very long time. My own triathlon training had taken over my life and I never seemed to have time for anything else. However seeing as I was on holiday I decided to look for something easy-reading to pass the time whilst I worked on my tan at the pool. Continue reading “Can’t Swim, Can’t Ride, Can’t Run: My Triathlon Journey from Common Man to Ironman by ANDY HOLGATE”
One last hurrah!
October in Switzerland is school holiday season. For many it’s the time when they head off to warmer and sunnier climes. Given that my wife is one of those people who feels the need to get away at any possible opportunity we booked an all-inclusive deal for 9 days on the island of Crete.
Continue reading “One last hurrah!”
The joys of off-season
Last Saturday was the final race of the season for me and now I can work on my recovery during the off-season. It’s the time of year when I throw away the training plan and do whatever the hell I want. Continue reading “The joys of off-season”
Seeland Triathlon, Murten, Switzerland 9 September 2017
I’d only signed up to do this race a few weeks earlier. It was going to be the final race of the season. I was planning on taking it easy and wanted to enjoy the occasion. I’d done so much training to get me through Challenge Roth and I didn’t want it going to waste. That said, it was going to be a change racing without the pressure of trying to hit any specific targets. Continue reading “Seeland Triathlon, Murten, Switzerland 9 September 2017”
Challenge Roth 2017
Roth is a wrap. I’m sitting here still not quite able to believe that I managed to complete a full iron-distance triathlon. Anyway, I’ll try and put into words how it went. Sorry for the lengthy post but it’s sort of fitting for the race distance.
whytri.ch 