Before I go into the Sunday's run, I wanted to write a little about my first brick session post Geelong Long Course. On Saturday, it was another 4am start at my house, rode 50km before meeting the group at Brighton. On most weekends, we would ride in a group down until the group splits up due to the different levels of fitness and endurance.
We had a big group of cyclist who rode past us then slowed down. We then started to creep up on them (not having to increase our speed) and without having any choice, we had to overtake them. They then decided they would not have a bar of it and sped up whilst half of our group was still on the right hand side. This was very dangerous for all - our squad, that group and any cars passing. Due to the aggression of this group (I know the group they belong to but I am choosing not to disclose it) I decided to slow down and just let them pass so I could not be hit by passing cars. We then caught up to them on Station St and by the looks of things, most of the group had no idea about cyclist etiquette. They once again decided to ride amongst the Tri Alliance crowd (how can you not realise we are a group when we are riding in similar gear) and this was again very annoying and dangerous as they turned off at their will without signaling or knowing the pace of the squad. I ended up doing my own thing with another squad member named Andy. He is another first timer. We rode along Nepean Hwy towards Mornington and was passed by the Hell Ride. They were another aggressive bunch and decided that we took up their path and nudged Andy over to tell them to stick to the left (where there was no path to ride on). This was a very rude thing to do and was an invasion of personal space. If this was to happen to a beginner cyclist, it would absolutely turn anyone off getting on their bikes. These cyclist forget that not everyone who rides a bike can ride shoulder-to-shoulder in a pack.
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| Nathan 4R Series Belt - I have the pink one |
We turned around at Mornington (at Main St) and rode back home which was about 147km (once again forgetting the Garmin for about 10-15km of the ride). The program was a 4km run off the bike and I ended up doing 4.5km with a 0.5km cool down walk back home.
So Sunday...
I used the new 4R Nathan nutrition belt but I found that one of the cages was loose and the 8oz bottle came out twice. As the bottles for this belt works like a one way valve (squeeze and drink without a nipple) - the fluid from the belt escaped easily. The cage which had the coke in stained my singlet too. Since then I have discovered that my old Nathan (10oz) flasks fits into the belt too and they are more spout friendly. Will be using these ones for my coke in the future.
I brought 6 gels with me on the run and due to the heat and hence the duration I was out on the road (3:15 - that's a long time for 29km - I am slow, I know), I consumed them all! I ran out of water about 15km in. Luckily there were several taps and drinking fountains along the way which came in handy as I filled up all 3 of the water bottles when and where I could - I also used the water to cool myself down as well as for hydration. I had mentioned before that I have set my Garmin for every 2km in line with the drink stations of IMMelbourne but due to the heat (it was around 30+Degrees Celsius), I found myself sipping every 1km. Fingers crossed that this would not be the case on race day otherwise I will be running with my own hydration.
The program had 28km but I had a feeling this would not get me back to Sandringham as it is 13km from Sandringham to Mordialloc and I had already done 16km+ a that point (Mordi). When I reached 28km on my Garmin (just past Black Rock clock tower) and I then realised that I had to squeeze 2km more till home - mentally I was broken. I had slowed down and walked about 100m to gather my thoughts - I was exhausted both physically and mentally due to the heat and the amount of time I had been out in the sun. I then decided to just harden the F up and picked up my pace until I reached Sandringham.
When I got to my car, I drove home and bought 3 bags of ice, a Gatorade and a super sized Slurpee (sugar free one) and sat in the ice bath for 15min (with no hesitation at all). My legs felt ok after the run (due to the ice bath) but mentally, I was exhausted for the rest of the day.
Looking back on Sunday, I am glad that it has occurred as part of my Ironman training. Mentally, I know that if I am able to run from Frankston to Sandringham (over 29km), all I have left is 13km or so to reach the end of my (Ironman) marathon. I lost nearly 2kg during this session even when I drank nearly 2 litres along the way and had a Gatorade and Slurpee post run. It showed the importance of being hydrated during these endurance events - not only during the sessions but pre and post session too.
This weekend will be a slight change of plans as I am doing the Big Bay Swim (from Port Melbourne - Williamstown 3.2km) and will be doing my own 30km run from my house. Will try to do the remainder of the Ironman route towards St Kilda from Mentone (via Black Rock). Actually looking forward to it!
33 Days until Ironman Melbourne!
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