Iceman Duathlon. Icy, Hard and 1st!

Iceman human Race duathlon – 1^st Place

For this year’s Iceman in Frimley Forest, Surrey I have to say, I  just had one of those days as an athlete where everything came together.

It’s actually the perfect course for me as the run is tough and the bike is hard without ever being particularly technical which is pretty much perfect really.  Last year I had pulled out on the first run after being sick and this year, having been 2^nd in the previous round, the Mudman, I knew my form was even better this time.

There were some very good relay teams that kept things very sharp at the sharp end but I did manage to come into T1 in 2^nd place overall. Oli Mahony,  who continues to improve year on year then came past me right at the end of the muddy, icy and increasingly slushy bike leg and I didn’t quite have it in me to go with him but I kept him in sight and despite cramp in both calfs in T2 if was able to accelerate over the second run to take back the lead and the win overall as well.

2013 has started well with two races and two wins and winning the Iceman is something I’m really proud of especially looking back at the previous guys that have won it. Now it’s time to kick on for the closing part of the 12/13 cross duathlon season with the final round of the Quadmire series in two weeks and then the human race Tuffman in Pippingford Park before the Dirt Run Cross Du in Worcester. Then, finally, before I head off to warmer climes (and climbs) for a couple of weeks in Lanzarote I have one of my all time favourite races, the Mud and Mayhem duathlon in Thetford Forest.

Hope to see many of you out on the trail!

A Quadtastic start to the new year. 1st place

           I decided that my first race of 2013, the 3rd round of the Quadrac racing Waddenhoe series would be a great chance for me to break my Quadrathlon duck and actually get into a kayak before I jump on the bike for once. Having done it I'm fairly confident that it is not the start of a new chapter in my sporting life but it was fun none the less.

The beautiful river Nene in Winter mode.

 To fill you in on how the experience went, here's my Facebook update from just after the race:

Pleased to report I didn't fall in.  I got into the kayak in first and then was passed by a guy who is a proper kayaker with a super fast carbon boat and everything. It was like being passed by one of those Bond style water rickshaws! Thankfully I caught him up on the bike and then got my head down. It must be something about these water based athletes because as soon as I went past him he tried to jump on my wheel and snapped his chain in doing so. That would be it for most people but Oh no, he ran, pushing the bike for another 4 miles around the course in order to get to transition and start the final run. Now that's hardcore. Although my rams and shoulders are killing me due to my hopelessly bad paddling technique I did enjoy being out on the River Nene. It is a beautiful river. I did make the mistake of paddling between two swans at one point as I was desperately trying to fight the current. One tried to bite my arm and the other hissed at me and then head-butted/beaked the boat. I was not scared.

It was nice to start the year with a win even though the race must have had the lowest number or competitors of any race I've done at about 8 or 9 people! It's only for the truly tough/mad you see, especially in January.  

The Duathlon was well supported and it looked like it had a good quality field too so I'm looking forward to getting back to the Du for the 4th and final round in February. 

Next up in two weeks time is the HumanRace.co.uk Iceman in the forests of Frimley.   I hope to see lots of you there.

HumanRace MudMan 2nd

Saturday saw my opening round of the Human Race off road series having missed the first round, the Wildman, in favour of one last try out on the Essex Course the same weekend.

It's been a really good Cross Duathlon season for me so far this winter and I'm pleased to say I'm still learning and still improving as well. Since September I've had a third place, two second places including this one and four wins but far more importantly for me I've managed to stay pretty much cold and illness free which is rare for me at this time of year. I've been using Maxifuel's Immune Support capsules which, I have to say at first might have had a strong dose of Placebo in them but the facts don't lie : since I've been taking them I just haven't got ill at a time when I would normally be a walking nose cheese factory.  Anyway, on to more pleasant things. Have a read about them here: http://www.maxishop.com/immune

MudMan! (Minus the mud!...) Surrey in December? It could be Colorado in June!.. It was COLD though, trust me...

I could write a waffling race report about how things unfolded but really, it was brutally simple : Doug Hall and I set the pace from the start then Doug pulled away from me and I pulled away from the rest. That's it! Doug was really strong on the day and deserved the win after taking the race to everyone and I'm itching for the next round, the IceMan in January now to see how a more all round course unleashes it's delights on us all.

For a brilliantly worded full race report and results have a read of my mate Jim McConnell's race report here: (PS - I'm looking forward to seeing you back dishing out the pain in the new year Jimbo!)

http://www.tri247.com/article_10967_MudMan%3A+view+from+the+sidelines.html?region_id=&category=

The MudMan's hills are relentless and steep and relentlessly steep. For those of you who did it you'll know that this picture does Heartbreak Ridge no justice at all.

 

Quadmire Series Rnd 2 : 1st

Tom Stead and I jump the first of many Icy ditches on lap one. tom's jumping style was waaaay better than mine!

Round one of Quadrac's Cross Duathlon series in Waddenhoe in Peterborough was greeted by sunny and cold conditions, with much of the courses's  notorious flooded bogs semi frozen. That was, until about lap two after which time they were just a freezing bog as opposed to a frozen one.  Once again it came down to a duel between myself and Tom Stead for the lead and this time, Tom wasn't on his best form and suffering from fatigue he pulled out on the bike leg which was a shame.  After working so hard to hold him off I had then built up a bg lead and so, knowing the Mudman was just a week ago I kept pushing hard to pack in some quality training in conditions that are actually much tuffer than what the Mudman has to offer even if the hills there are a bit longer. 

As always, the Quadrac team of Mark and Richard looked after us royally and I look forward to the 3rd round where, weather permitting I'm toying with the idea of trying the Quadrathon by adding in a kayak leg down the river Nene. We'll see...

Anyway - Enough waffling on. Tom's Dad took some brilliant pics which I'll share here as they so much more that I can in words about the nature of the races and course down there. 

on one of the constant ups and downs that the Waddenhoe course has

This is actually in the race....  I know.... But that's the kind of race it is!

ho d'you like my skinny Cross tyres on my Trek Superfly 29er? Bontrager Cross 3's naturally...

still breaking through new ice even on Lap 6!

How to train for Cross Duathlon

I've recently written an article about how to make the mud, cold and winter race season work for you and it is published on the nations number one triathlon site www.tri247.com.

It's here : http://www.tri247.com/article_10902_How+to+train+for+cross+duathlon.html?region_id=&category=

Essex Cross Duathlon, one year to the Nationals and 1st place

Having had a crazy week and nearly run out of time again I thought I would simply use Multisport Management's report from Sunday's Essex Cross Duathlon here:
over to race organiser Graham Lee ( www.multisportmanagement.co.uk ):


The Essex Off Road Duathlon, sponsored by 53-12.com and Essex & Suffolk Water went ahead despite the weather. The original 4k first run was binned as the route was impassable due to the river bursting its banks, so the second 2.5k run was used to top and tail the event.

Essex Duathlon 2012 - Mudtastic

Race morning was met with very chilly winds but decent enough sunshine after heavy overnight rain, so 70% of the entries decided to get out of bed and turn up and give it a go with five waves setting off at 2-minute intervals. Jez Cox set the pace over the 2.5k first run (9:04) with Kirsty Prior first lady in 10:57s.

The next stage was to tackle the newly extended 14km bike route. One word describes this year's course....MUD! With the previous two years being hard-packed, this year the mountain bikes had the advantage over the cyclocross riders. Jez Cox dominated the bike on his Trek Superfly 29er in a time of 38:50. Kirsty Prior was the fastest female again in a time of 51:17, both athletes streching out their respective leads.

Out onto the final run and Jez and Kirtsy romped home in a time of 9:52 and 12:58 respectively to take the wins and go into next year's English Cross Duathlon Championship as clear favourites.

Roy Young was top male vet and finished second overall, having found a new lease of life in the muddy stuff and Dan Foster was third. Jenny Hartley and Clare O'Neill completed the ladies podium a couple of minutes after Kirsty.

The pair relay teams had their debut in this year's race, with the runner completing both start and finish legs and the cyclist doing the middle section. It was easy to spot who did what, as the runner would have a lot less washing to do when they got home! Well done to Jamil and Jason for fastest male pair and the Jellicoe family for fastest mixed pair.

The 70th Win. It's been a long time coming!

   
         In November 2002, as an Elite Road racer with an offer from a cycling team in Northern France on the table for the following season, I entered Dave Wardle's Autumn Duathlon at the Hillingdon circuit for some end of season training. To my surprise, I won, and not just that but I actually seemed to enjoy the running. In the coming weeks I began to run much much more and so the seed that had been planted began to grow. The French team were offering an apartment to live in with 3 other riders and a full programme of decent races as well as a (very) basic wage.

          Of course, logic would have dictated that I go with the cycling option and do some Duathlon for fun on my return but that's not my way. I prayed about it and waited for an answer and the answer was clear: Stay in the UK and give Duathlon a go whilst building a new life for myself. 6 months later I had fully converted to being a run-biker and had met and moreover was engaged to the beautiful Leda Ray. by this stage I had heard all about the sticky endings for said French team which had folded and sent the riders home having (as always in cycling) run out of money.  Meanwhile I was enjoying the freedom of running and not having to drag masses of bike kit everywhere with me and if anything, as marriage went on, I had more and more time to train and look for improvements as Leda was away racing in far flung parts of the world for most of the first 8 years of our marriage.  All these years later Duathlon has given me so many incredible memories and I have made many great friends through it. I'm pleased to say I have never made a penny from it but what I have gained money cannot buy. I'm now loving putting something back as the GB team manager and I'm also heavily involved with many of the countries best Duathletes and events through my own company, howgoodcouldibe.com.

Sunday's race was a great event where I really felt all the hard work of my recent training coming together. It was a new one to me, the Walden Duathlon in Essex and although I had a great race and could actually feel the results of all my hill training in Stanborough park finally paying out I did also manage to achieve a new first as I reached the milestone of my 70th win in 9 yaesr of competition:  My first race penalty!  As GB national team manager and a coach this is, of course highly embarrassing as I'm always saying there is no excuse for getting penalties and so as such I wont offer any.  I threw my Maxifuel bottle towards my camper as I rode past at the end of lap one and this is classed in the rules as littering. As such I received a 2 minute penalty and was just lucky enough that I had won by 2 mins 17 seconds and so I hung on by the skin of my teeth. So I'll make no excuses........     But I would like to offer a supposition: Suppose this, if you will : Next time, I throw my bottle on top of my camper, or even better, I throw it in through the open skylight in the roof and it lands neatly in my bottle holder. Is that littering!?  I hear what you're saying: leave it Cox, leave it.

I had my camper with me because the night before I had been a guest of British Triathlon at their Awards dinner where we celebrated a great year for the sport. I was on a table with some of the other GB team managers and it was a fascinating night swapping stories of how we deal with the little 'issues' that come up with athletes in far flung places on the world circuit. It was also great to see our Olympians being honored and all this before catching 4 hrs sleep in the car park outside where the temperature was -2 degrees which is, it seems, the perfect preparation for racing!

Waddenhoe Quagmire Series Round One : 2nd

Sunday saw the opening round of the 4 race winter Quadrac racing series which is tellingly known at the Quadmire series on account of the Quagmire that you have to run through on both runs. When I say ‘have to’, that's a literal comment because with a fence to your left and the river nene to your right you have no choice. 

I had heard of the races’ short but brutal nature last year and managed to get an entry in for the final round for which the course was frozen solid.  This, as Sunday proved, had given me a false sense of the course being ‘undulating but nowhere near as bad as people had said. 

Sunday was quite the opposite. Unlocked by what can only have been conditions marginally above freezing and lubricated by relentless horizontal rain the course was unrecognisable from the one I had remembered. The River Nene had decided the best option was to split up and branch out into, well, all areas of the course and the Quadmire which I had sniffed at having danced across it last winter to take a comfortable win came back to bite me. Or swallow me, which is perhaps more appropriate.  Following on from last week Tom Stead was once more up there with me on the first run, the two of us running shoulder to shoulder and each stopping at various points to help lift the other back out of the quagmire in a most sporting manner forced more by reciprocal hope of survival than good sportsmanship.  As soon as we got onto the bike, Tom opened up a smallish gap on me which to his credit he held all the way to the finish.  He's really come on over the last year and I look forward to some tasty battles with him on the Waddenhoe course this winter. 

Box End Park Autumn Cross Duathlon. 1st

           Entering the last 3 days of a course of antibiotics I decided it should now be fine to not just race but do the first bit of exercise for three weeks and I'm glad I did as I love the course down at Box End and it always suits me well. It was a cold, sunny day and ridiculously windy as well. The Box End course consists of a long flat loop around the edge of the water ski lake and then a series of small hills which should make things harder but as it was, with a very string Northerly wind blowing down the country it meant that the ride and run up the lake was like climbing a mountain after which, coming back, you barely had to try.  

            It was really good to have talented young triathlete Tom Stead up there with me on the first run and it was a shame that he managed to trip on the grassy course and lose time as its always good to really push each other. After that, as I got on the bike, I really got into my stride and all the benefits of my Trek Superfly 29er became immediately apparent as it just rolls so fast over that kind of terrain. That's exactly why I sought out the best 29er for next years inaugural Cross Duathlon nationals and it more than proved its worth on Saturday feeling effortless compared to my old 26 inch race bike.    


          As a coach I would never have recommended any of my athletes to race after 3 weeks off ill but sometimes it can be worth the risk and thankfully I now feel 'back at it' again and hopefully ready to have some fun these next few weeks as I start the Quadmire Duathlon series and then build to the Essex Duathlon and the start of the Human Race series.  On the downside, my lovely wife, the gorgeous Leda Jane has now come down with a really heavy cold so get well soon Leda!xx

Ill again and getting restless....

          Have you had it yet?
I'm back on the dreaded Anitibiotics again after 2 weeks of doing nothing except tending my billowing nose and emptying my Ectoplasmic lungs. I literally haven't had the energy at all to run or ride now for over two weeks going right back to the first race of my cross season, the Xtreme Terrain Du. 
Sometimes that's how it goes though so instead I've been buying myself in my spare time doing up my bikes (oklay, I admit, tinkering with them and then taking them to Tony in Bike and Run to undo my ills)  and fixing niggles that I've been carrying. I've actually had a knot in my calf since my last early morning run in Nancy where I was with the GB Duathlon team back in September. Now, I'm a big believer in treating like with like and so a Knot should be treated with a little help from a Knott! Graeme Knott to be precise, a good friend of mine and by coincidence, this year's GB team mechanic. 
Graeme Imports 'The Stick', an ingenious self massage stick described as 'the tooth brush for muscles' and so I put it to work on my calf and then went to town on my back and quads too and have been using it ever since as you can really feel the difference. I'm trying not to sound like this is a blatant plug as it isn't, its just one of those things that works so well it would be rude not top recommend it. Have a look here for more about them: www.the-stick.co.uk