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21/2/2015 0 Comments weekly newsletter 24 february 2015NEW START FOR THE ENTICER At our next club Triathlon on 22nd March, the start time for the Enticer event will now be one minute after the last 25 minute handicapper starts, ie 26 minutes after the start of the long course race. The committee has made this decision to split the start primarily to ease congestion during the swim leg and have everyone finish the event closer to the same time. Note that registration will still close at 6:20 am for both events as usual. There will be a slight change to the enticer swim course that will be explained on the day. The swim course for the long event will not change. COFFS CLEANS UP AT TRIAL BAY CHTC led the charge at Trial Bay Triathlon on Sunday with a large contingent braving the weather and making the trek to South West Rocks. Everyone was watching the radar on Saturday and keeping their eye on the Facebook updates. With the news that the kids’ races went ahead on Saturday despite some pretty miserable conditions, our athletes steeled themselves and prepared to face the weather gods. As it turned out, it was a relatively pleasant morning for racing. There were a few showers during the race, but nothing serious. It was actually the muddy quagmire in the transition area that ended up giving the most trouble. Although the swim looked short (500m – sounds easy, right?) and you could wade almost to the first buoy, it was a deceptively rough swim. The sea was quite rough, by Trial Bay standards, the swim was against the prevailing current and there was a spot towards the end where the waves met from different direction creating a brief washing machine effect. Happily the run up the beach to transition was not as long as previous years, giving more honest swim split results. After picking through the muddy transition, athletes then had to push their bikes up to the top of the hill near the gaol. That certainly tested the calf muscles. But once at the top, it was the usual pleasant 2-loop course that takes in some beautiful scenery. Margie Gill almost became part of the scenery after a close encounter with the local wildlife. Slightly shaken, and with the addition of kangaroo fur now adorning her bike, she got back in the saddle and bravely finished the race. Well done Margie – hope you’re OK. Kudos also to Mick Dougherty who ran back to his campsite to get his spares and tools after he got a flat on the bike course. Mick still finished the race in a respectable time despite the brief interlude back to camp. Once again through the muddy transition and onto the run, athletes ran the 6km through the gaol surrounds, into the bush, through the suburbs, some sand dunes and back on to the beach. Those lucky, or fast enough to get up the beach early on had a relatively easy run over the last 1.5km back to the finish line. The tide was coming in fast and high, and it gradually became more a game of dodging the waves, or just bite the bullet and run through the water. Not what you needed at the back end of a tough race. But everyone came through and CHTC reaped in the awards at presentation. CHTC took out the Tri Club award and we will once again have our names engraved on the trophy (if anyone knows where it is!). Thanks to all the members who represented CHTC and well done for braving the elements despite the predictions of foul weather. Richard Pearson took out first place in an incredible 1:10:15. That’s faster than many of us do the club race! Wow! Congratulations Richard. Looks like it’s going to be a fantastic year for you. Sarah Marsden was 2nd female overall and showed her incredible strength and power in each discipline. Soccer’s loss is our gain (you will be at Club Champs, won’t you Sarah???). CHTC guns Joe Kane, Clint Rowlings, Leighton Rogan, Andrew Rowlings, Ed Brazier, Gordon Abbot, Elora Croaker, Alison Howle, Kate Marsden, Jen Hoyle, Lyn Fulton and Jess Dougherty put in stellar performances and all took out podium places in their respective age groups. Congratulations to Matt Heaney, Pete Roberts, Marg Roberts, Tamzin Pike and Sian Bignall for tackling this race for the first time. There were loads of other CHTC members participating, each with their own goals and achievements. Thanks to each and every one of you who contributed to our success to take out the Club prize and well done for looking the weather gods in the eye. OFF-SEASON ADVENTURE RACE Adventure racing will return to Mylestom this winter, with first Bush n Bay Adventure Race to be held on 25th July 2015. You can test yourself over the full adventure race course, which includes 4 stages of mountain bike, kayak, trail and beach runs over a 45-50km course. If that just sounds too complicated, then why not take on the the 12km trail & beach run . The Bush n Bay Adventure Race is approximately 45-50km and will be held in the stunning surrounds, tracks, trails and waters of the Bongil Bongil National Park, Coffs Coast and Bellinger River, and is set to challenge all levels of Adventure Racers, from beginners to veterans, and elite athletes. Registration and all the details are at http://www.centauroutdoorevents.com.au/bush-n-bay/home. BIKE BAGS The club has purchased two bike bags that are available to members should they be travelling for an event. These are stored with Scott Bocking at Woodseys Wheels in Woolgoolga. If you would like to reserve one, please contact Scott and note they are obviously subject to availability. Contact Woodseys on 6654 1217 to make a booking. bcu COFFS TRI – Interview with a Veteran Village Sports had a chat to Peter Wood this week about how he first got into triathlons and his training schedule for the upcoming bcu Coffs Tri... I have been doing Tris since 1994 and started with the Bananacoast Life Education Triathlon. I was lying on the couch watching the Tooheys Blue Triathlon series which was held at Opal Cove in 1994 and I saw Spot Anderson fall off his bike and slide along the road towards the front doors of Opal Cove and when he realized that the camera was on him, he gave this very happy smile. I thought to myself, that you even have fun when you fall off your bike. As the ads came on, I was a bit slow flicking channels and saw the ad for the upcoming Bananacoast Life Education Triathlon. So, I thought I would give it a go. Bought a bike for $250, did some sort of training, but realized on the way to the swim start that I was the only person wearing board shorts and didn't have any goggles. Didn't matter, I had a couple of rests along the 1 km swim around the Jetty and only had 2 people ahead of me as I ran up the beach. Mmmmm, they were the first swimmers of the Teams, who started 10 mins after me. Anyway, my bike was really easy to find, being the only bike left in the individual competitors compound and off I went. I came 3rd last in my first Tri and have slowly improved since then, although I think I might be regressing to my earlier days now. I plan to keep doing Tris for as long as I can...hopefully maybe another 20 years, when I'm 80yo. My preferred distance is now Ironman, because it is a full day and night for me and just like most Tris, it is just a great day out at the beach with your mates when you were younger. Go for a swim, ride your bike around for a while and then have a run around. For me though, the run has become a "Walk in the Dark".  My favourite memories of the 2014 BCU Tri was being a volunteer and watching all the young children racing along Jordan Esplanade and giving all they had. Of course, the race itself is so picturesque along the Jetty and this year also along the Eastern (Southern) Breakwater Wall, will make the run more of a scenic trip.
I missed the inaugural 2013 event, because I was recovering from a trip to hospital. However, I came down and watched it as part of my recovery and it got me enthused to start running, cycling and swimming again. It's always great to race in Coffs Harbour and be part of the proud people showcasing Coffs to others from all parts of Oz and OS. And also, someone from Coffs may be enthused enough to 'give it a go', as I did 21 years ago. As for training for BCU Tri 2015, it starts tomorrow or the next day, or the day after that. However, I will put a concerted effort in over the next fortnight and fortunately, my muscles have some muscle memory and will bring me home, hopefully in OK shape. Also, I may do a lot of chanting instead of training....."I think I can, I think I can, I think I can, I know I can, I know I can...' However, I don't get too many injuries from overtraining and am usually ready for the day of the race. We are so lucky to have the BCU Tri in Coffs Harbour for all residents. Suddenly, there is an influx of fit, healthy looking people who exude confidence, have big smiles, flashy cars, flashy partners and flashy bikes, and usually less than 10% body fat. Their children usually do the kids BCU and they are copies of Mum and Dad, and ready to take the world in their stride. Good on Coffs Harbour for hosting such a prestige event and welcoming such enthusiastic competitors. In my case, from that very first Bananacoast Life Education Triathlon in 1994, I have travelled the world and all over Oz and raced in 6 IM events overseas and then continued the holidays to run with the bulls in Pamplona, ridden my bike along the Danube River from Germany to Budapest, walked Kokoda Trail and had great holidays with like-minded people from Coffs Harbour. All because I was too slow to flick channels and signed up for my first Tri 21 years ago. Because doing a Tri is usually a personal thing on improving your time from your last event, the support you receive from fellow athletes is fantastic. DEALING WITH A BAD RACE We’ve all been there. Things don’t go to plan. The elements are all working against you. You really shouldn’t have had that enormous steak the night before a race. And lots of other reasons for having a bad race, or a performance that falls below your expectations. Rather than beat yourself up, or not really learning from the experience, here are some suggestions from Olivier Poirier-Leroy (a national level US swimmer) writing for www.swimswam.com. While he is discussing swim performance, the concept easily translates to triathlon. The following is reproduced from http://swimswam.com/swimmers-3-step-strategy-dealing-poor-performance/. ENJOYING THE PROCESS — GOOD, BAD AND UGLY Enjoying the process. I have talked about it on many an occasion here. But it’s more than a catchphrase, and something you can wield to not only make the most of the good workouts, but squeeze out some good from the bad. The full spectrum of what “enjoying the process” includes – the good stuff, the great workouts, the wins, the in-season best times, but also the not-so-great things, those bad workouts, restless nights, the moments some view as setbacks while others view them as learning opportunities. Here is a 3-step plan to leverage those less-than-awesome swims and the process — good and bad — into something that you can use to catapult you forward: Step 1: Recognize the poor performance and how it is making you feel. Our first instinct after a poor swim is to either brush it aside – which isn’t an altogether terrible idea – or to dwell on it. While the former is a good policy to have, make sure that you have derived some positive from it. In the case of the latter, if you are going to dwell on it, you may as well use that time of rumination to help slingshot past it. Take a moment and step back for a breath and recognize the swim, and how it is making you feel. Acknowledge how it is making you feel instead of going on with your day morose and down on yourself. By writing this out, or at the very least taking the time to fully acknowledge the performance and the resulting emotions you are feeling, you are able to put words to the performance. And when we put words to it we crystallize it, and ideally provide a powerful reminder for why we don’t want to experience it again. Step 2: Take a look at the factors and circumstances that led to the poor performance. Swimmers are creatures of habit. We put on our suits the same way, approach the main set with a similar mindset, and even prepare for our races in ways that are remarkably consistent. It’s so consistent, so habitual that we rarely ever notice if these habits are helpful or harmful to our overall success. When you take a look back at the circumstances that led to your poor performance you will see that some of the same things will pop up over and over again. It’s important that you undertake this step with the utmost amount of objectivity. We tend to view our own performances with a bias that may lead us to over-exaggerate or underestimate the impact of various variables of our swimming. (It can help big time to have a coach work with you on this step.) Boil down what led to your poor performance. Write them out. And then move briskly onwards to the step below. Step 3: Plan out what you are going to do differently moving forward to avoid a repeat poor performance. Now that you have the circumstances in hand for your previous poor performance, figure out what you are going to do moving forward to avert a similar situation. If you are consistently having bad practices because you aren’t warming up enough, put together a plan or action list for things you can do to insure that you are ready to rock come the main set. Fatigue causing you bad workouts? Outline a plan to get more sleep combined with better recovery practices. Getting psyched out before your big races? Put together an action plan to keep yourself focused and confidant behind the blocks. Having a plan to combat those poor performances has the effect of instilling confidence from having a path forwards, while also allowing you to have something to focus on instead of the negative feelings that arose from the bad swim. ONES FOR THE CALENDAR
http://www.triathlon.org.au/State_Associations/NSW/Events/Triathlon_NSW_Events/SCODY_Triathlon_NSW_Club_Championships.htm
WISE WORDS “It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.” - Anonymous
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