Exotic Cruise ?

Well Guys, when I signed up for this gig I was imagining comfortable motor cruiser, spot of sunbathing, and the odd cooling dip in the water.. and then I saw the Viking Princess ( no offence Reg !) and all I could think of was one of those paper bags you find stuffed in the back of an aircraft seat...all I want for Christmas are some sea legs or a large box of Stugeron. A friend has commented though that her husband is rather jealous that I am going aboard this rather fine fishing vessel and what a waste it is not to be using it for fishing !!! Well, there is a thought ? Perhaps it could take our mind of the cold and nausea...though I havent got time for another bloody hobby ! On a more serious note, training is going well with me managing to squeeze 2 runs, bikes and swims in a week and a fantastic yoga class which I feel is the most important part of my training schedule. This is because I will be using my own personal spiritual mantra to get me through the swim.... "Its not cold, its not cold, its not cold"....not one to share with the rest of the yoga class whilst they are adding spiritual calm and serene qualities to their practices...ommmmm. The one blip in my swim training though since being back in the pool this past month is my body's severe dislike to chlorine ! I spent the whole summer open water swimming and avoiding the pool which was literally a breath of fresh air as when I swim in a chlorinated pool I suffer from rhinitis for days afterwards which is severly irritating. This has meant that joining in on club sessions at Hitchin is rather difficult so I swim at Royston Pool which uses less chlorine so less aggravating to my nasal passages ! This does mean then that I will be very much looking forward to the return of open water swimming (though I may regret saying this in March !) I am currently on the search for some good open water swim races for the team to do (with no wetsuits !)...watch this space ...

Chilly runs

So then boys and girls is it cold enough for you?

I've been opting for short sleeved t-shirt and flappy shorts for the lunchtime run and two layers and shorts for my morning bike ride so am feeling it.

Focusing on running with the LZ marathon in two weeks - over 45 miles this week. Will get back in the pool when I have more time.

Xmas coming means I have to remember am a triathlete 24 hours a day not just 10 hours a week when I am training i.e. ease back on the beers/champagne/sambucas - but I reckon its those canapes that do the damage.

All aboard the good ship Viking Princess

Step by step

Step 1 - Go riding with less on than usual for this time of year
Step 2 - Single-speed the bike for the winter
Step 3 - Get a cold that puts me out of action for over a week.

Well at least I have nearly a year to make up any lost ground.
And at least I can already breathe bi-laterally!

Damn it's cold

Had a weekend away in Suffolk and when in Rome, etc.

Southwold beach: All guns blazing I ran in, not that cold I thought, the water upto my waist and then I dived in. And suddenly I can't breathe and my heart just stops, blind panic and I have to get out. Stand on the sand thinking what am I going to do in the channel? So I go again ease myself in and swim for a minute or so still tight chested and a bit panicky. Get out and thinks bugger now I'll have to go tomorrow. Walked back to the car dripping wet in just boxer shorts whilst people mutter masochist/ weirdo and various combinations thereof. Very dishearten went for a run and got lost for 2 1/4 hours. All in all a bad day.

Aldeburgh Beach: So Sunday morning with the rather delightful backdrop of Sizewell B& C nuclear reactors. Try again, this time expecting it disaster, but it was actually quite pleasant in for about 3 or 4 minutes. Got out this ,prepared with towel and everything ,got dressed feeling rather smug. Much better day.

So now all I have to do is get from 3 minutes to an hour at a time. Blue lagoon here we come.

Getting use to the cold

"Mostly this week I be very excited", great stuff knowing now we have in place a massive challenge for 2008. We are throwing ourselves into the deep & challenging nature at her best, O yes one of the hardest Marathon swims in the world & we are doing it. The run & bike seem to be appropriate seems we are members of a premier Tri club. The acclimatization is going to be easy just embrace the cold & think warm, occasional cool shower heating off in the car & wear shorts & tee's. I will be practicing the bi-lateral & switch one side breathing to help with conditions we will experience, we need to build our swims into next year up to 2 hour blocks as well as the normal 2 to 3 swim sets. The technique is swimming beautiful & down hill so head down cutting through the waves & effort level 80-90% 0f 1500 pace. The conditions can get bad so the idea is to build endurance over the 1 hour allocated swim, e.g tides, gale force conditions, surface temperature, jelly fish(have antihistamine in your support bag), feed times. I expect we are chomping at the bit for a sea swim so lets get the diary's out & Arlesey pits will be along sooner than we think, the plan for me is swim half a lap or one in the orca suit take it of & swim to the 1st or 2nd boy gradual adaption at 13 degree.
Getting on with prices for Winnebago Fvstri tour bus & Speak to Lee next week at Hitchin pool for training & spiritual advice.

So excited.
Woody

I came away from that first meeting slightly more worried than I thought I would be and certainly a lot more excited. Ironman Switzerland is my big focus for next year and I assumed that a couple of pit swims in my speedos once IM is out of the way and I would be fine.

Will get some sea swimming in in Western Oz over Xmas but maybe slightly different than the Channel.

No way am I enduring 11 months of cold showers. I'm hoping that swimming an hour at a time this won't be as necessary as for a solo attempt.

Already into winter base training and managing about 8hrs per week. Almost got "egged" on the way home from work on my bike on Halloween but other than that all going well and so far no injuries.