IMC in photos

Perfect conditions

Spinning north through Whistler

Looking across Green Lake

Strong start to the run

Near end of first lap of run

Sprint to the finish

A footstep or two from stopping

Relief, with Margreet by my side

The Iron Tim crew

Photos by Iron John.

Attentional control - focus

Lance Watson's thoughts on preparing to race:


Your goal for any key race, regardless of fitness level, should be to remain as "on-task" as possible all day long. This is no small feat in Ironman or endurance events. It's a long time to be out there! In training and racing, many top professionals practice focusing on "what is happening right now". Review the course logistics and run the event through your mind, one step at a time. Think about what you want to focus on throughout. 

IMC by the numbers

Saturday went smooth. Early dinner. Slept 6-7 hours, fairly relaxed. Woke at 3:15 ahead of alarm. Had my breakfast, we left for T2 at 4:20 as planned. Dropped bags, got marked, took shuttle to start arriving about 5am. Had lots of time.

I did a pre-race 10-15 min run and I felt good. Wave of nerves hit me about half hour before the start - same as last year in Penticton. I was keen to get in the water and settle my mind. I entered the water at 6:35, 25 mins before the start. I was warm but in hindsight, I went in a bit too early as I swam or treaded water until the start gun. I did though find a great starting spot.

Swim   1:09:41
- 1:50 per 100m pace, I was 34th in age group after swim

Two new swim experiences for me. First, I had my goggles knocked off my face not once but twice. First time I took it in stride, second time was annoying to say the least. Second new experience was fairly intense cramping in my left calf; I stopped once to massage it - I think too long in water before the start. Overall, I felt I was swimming well but time clearly shows I swam far slower than I thought and far slower than I have been in the pool. I felt I should have been at least 5 minutes faster.

T1  5:07

Because of concern about cold in the Callaghan, I swam without a top as I didn't want to start the ride soaking wet. So I put two dry tops on after the swim, arm warmers, garden gloves, helmet, sunnies and carried my shoes to the road. Crikey! Slowest T1 I've ever had I think. Threw away one minute here.

Bike  5:50:59
- a pace of 30.77 km/hr, I was 36th in age group after bike

I felt I rode conservatively but strong through 100k - as I had in training - but then I slowed. Stopped for special needs and then was swamped by several packs in the meadows. I chose not to ride with them. Right decision? Interesting post-race discussion about that. The splits along the bike course, when compared with some others I know, suggest I rode conservatively the whole day but not overly so. Perhaps I was holding back a bit too much for the run. It's a balance. I struggled to take in nutrition from about 120k but averaged a little more than 300 cals per hour - slightly below my target. I'm confident in saying that I gave away at least 10 minutes here.

T2 3:30

Shoes left on bike. Helmet off. Socks on, shoes on, hat on and one gel. Not a super fast transition but I did what I needed.

Run  3:49:54
- a pace of 5:26 per km, which lifted me to 20th overall in age group

I ran the first 6.9km at a pace of 4:54 per km and I ran the final 6.4km at a pace of 4:40. As I knew during the race, I was shuffling from about 26k through 35k - nutrition failure. I felt good after the initial 1-3k and I felt really good leading into the second lap and starting it. I was passing a lot of people. In fact, I ran past 151 people during the run. Nutrition issues: drip, drip, drip for the first 10-15k but then struggled to keep taking and opted not to get my special needs for the second lap. In hindsight, a mistake. I need to learn to 'force' in calories because without them ...

Margreet saw me with about 3 miles to go and told me to hammer it and it helped immensely as I ran as hard as I could to the finish. I felt that I should have been able to run the marathon at a pace closer to 5 minute kilometres, with some drift. I know that I left 10-15 minutes on the run course.

10:59:11

Seventh Sub 11 finish

******************

If I'd been more on target, then I think I would have been about half an hour faster. I would have finished top 10 in my age group and I'd now be looking for flights and accommodation on the Big Island. I still think 10:30 was a reasonable pre-race expectation based on my training. I wasn't ever going to go Sub 10 here.

In the end, it wasn't the day I had visualized. And while I'm not unhappy with my race as I gave it what I had on the day - and I made some mistakes too, I'm not happy with the result because I had much higher expectations in terms of performance in the swim, bike and run.

That's the challenge with 'big' races. There's a huge build and then they are over. I'm not done racing yet and will take a few weeks to look ahead to next season.

I'm still optimistic about what lies ahead. I'm keen to find a way to go faster. I will go faster. Being fast is important to me. I will continue to train 'hard' and look for a way to race 'harder'.

Whistler - official photos

Climbing in the Callaghan

Hammering home

Seventh Sub 11 finish 

20th in my new age group

Forward momentum

A well-timed comment from Lucy Smith:

Racing well is about forward momentum:  physically and emotionally being both focussed on what you can do well right now, while keeping your path in a straight line to your goal. 

A small window for success will appear before us one day and whether we jump through that window or not is what makes the difference. 

Do you take that small step forward at the unplanned moment? Do you embrace moving out of your comfort zone without a second thought, without the 'what if'?  

Taking the third step requires us to overcome a fear or a doubt about our ability to reach our goal. The third step is saying 'Yes' and not 'No', leaping at a challenge and not shutting down. Do this and the chances are that when the big opportunities present themselves, you will be ready and able to head into the unknown with all your power. 

Half a century

Five decades. Fifty years. 18,250 days.*

It seems like a long time and yet it continues to fly past, and at times I sense it is accelerating. There’s no doubt that I’m introspective. I see it as a positive. I think a lot, about a lot of different things. It’s simply part of who I am.

I am fortunate. Fortunate to have had the parents I have - Aileen and John, to have the three siblings I have - Marcelline, Nancy and John and their spouses/families - and to have found my Margreet. 

Family is far more important to me than anything.

I also have my health. I am more fit than I’ve ever been. I’m as determined as ever to take care of myself and I’m optimistic about what lies ahead.

Every day I learn something new - mostly about myself and how I want to interact with those around me and the world at large. Never stop learning - great advice that I have heeded.

Turning 50 seems surreal in the sense that I don’t think much about my actual age. There are two major reasons for this: Margreet and embracing an active lifestyle.

It’s important to find someone with whom to share your life. It’s not easy. And it’s as much a journey as any other aspect of life. When the person appears, you know.

As for being active, that is a conscious decision. At first it had little to do with performance per se and it was far more about being. As a kid I played road/ice hockey, baseball and tennis - in particular. I scored many Stanley Cup winning goals, had a few World Series winning at bats and final out catches on the wall and even managed to out hit Bjorn Borg - I had a huge poster of him on my wall.

I credit my initial move to Vancouver for opening the door to a range of new sports including skiing, mountain biking, road cycling and triathlon. I found great inspiration in the ocean and mountains here on the West Coast and the people I met who challenged me to seize the day. I did, I have and I hope I always will.

I ran my first marathon 15 years ago. I finished my first Ironman 12 years ago. I was in Kona - for the first time as an athlete - six years ago. I am in my fourth age-group - and that's a huge positive. I am young again every five years, though I seek to be young at heart every day.

I was born in Toronto and lived there for the first 19 years. Toronto will always be home to me. I spent four years - mostly - in Ottawa at university. I spent almost a year in France, also at university and wandered around Europe. Highly recommended. And I spent the better part of seven years in Australia: working and at the same time becoming a triathlete.

I’ve now been back on the West Coast for almost six years. (I'm still a Maple Leaf, always will be.)

I’m a numbers guy, though my high school calculus teacher would perhaps challenge that assertion. He just didn’t get me.

I’ve been a journalist/editor for 25 years. It's all I've ever wanted to do. The career that I've had so far is vastly different than I expected and yet the essence of what I do is exactly what I love. I graduated from Carleton, where I met some superb individuals, with a degree in journalism and political science in 1986. 

I dreamt of going to graduate school - the London School of Economics was atop my list - but when I was done with a formal education, I was done. I wanted to be ‘in’ the world, studying it as a participant. I wanted to work and jumped at the opportunity at a failing UPI and then leapt at the one from a nascent Bloomberg. I had no idea where I would end up but I was confident it was a step forward.

Being creative is something nurtured deep within, daily, and I credit my parents for instilling this gift in me. My love of reading and writing comes from my Mom, my love of photography and visual art from my Dad. They also taught me the importance of family, integrity and respecting others.

I write, paint and take photos - primarily for me. Each is a form of expression and I think my ‘work’ so to speak reflects who I am. But it’s mostly for me.

Yes, I have a blog and this post will appear on it as have hundreds of others. It's one way that I can collect my thoughts. I have many blogs, a mix of writing and photos and paintings. A digital collection of me.

Half a century. Thousands of words written, thousands of photos taken. Thousands more of both to follow. Random - and not so random - thoughts and images.

Words and photos help to capture the relationships I have with family, friends and the world - both local and global.

I am very happy with my life. Being content is a good place to be. That doesn’t mean I’m planning to slow down anytime soon. Far, far from it. I do believe that what you get in life is directly related to what you put in.

This past week I learned the meaning of Namaste - the greeting I hear at the end of every yoga session - and it strikes me as an appropriate way to conclude my first half century: The spirit in me, honours the spirit in you.

*A friend noted that I've been around longer than I realize when one takes into consideration leap years! 

Is Ironman Canada a fast course?

Square peg, round hole. 

Sometimes you simply can’t know and that’s a good thing. 

I have been shrugging my shoulders a lot recently when asked how fast I will go in two weeks at Ironman Canada in Whistler.

Of course I have my own personal times from previous Ironmans as a point of reference, and those help because they have been accomplished on a range of different courses over the past decade. But each year is unique even on the same course. My two fastest times were on courses on two different continents!

Of the three disciplines, the swim seems the most predictable. Short of a weather ‘situation’, the lake will be calm and relatively warm on race morning. What we do know is that it’s going to be two laps. 

I think there’s the potential for some whirlpool momentum but as I haven’t swum in the lake yet, not to mention with 2500 others, I’ll have to find out on August 25th.

That said I expect to swim strong. I have had a great swim season and I am confident that I am now the best swimmer that I’ve ever been, both technically and in terms of speed. Executing on race day is the key.

On Saturday Volker and I spun on the course for about 100kms - easy. We talked about bike splits and both of us reached the same conclusion - there’s no definitive way to know in advance.

I think it’s fair to say the bike course is the toughest one I’ve ever prepared for. I’ve had some tough training days on it and some superb ones too. The difference between these days, I think, is a reflection of nutrition as well as the wind. (And there was that one day that I experienced hypothermia too.)

As we cycled from Pemberton back to where we parked in Whistler, we made the decision to spin, as in easy. And we flew up the hills. Ok, flew here is relative. But we completed the segment far faster than expected. A key reason: perfect weather - no wind, slightly overcast and not too hot.

Earlier we had experienced a head wind going into the Meadows and back. I’ll write more about my strategy for the bike course in the days ahead. 

In short, the bike course in my opinion will smash a lot of people. And if it’s windy - as it was at Nexen with Luka after we returned home late Saturday afternoon - it will be a smashfest. (I’d be OK with wind. It’s a fact of life here in the Sea to Sky corridor.)

Still, don’t despair. All will not be lost if the wind is howling on race day.

There are opportunities to fly on the bike course and both Volker and I have spent weekend after weekend these last three months determining where speed awaits to be found.

And yet as the first line of this post says, after several thousand kms on Highway 99 and the course itself, I still have no real idea what sort of split is a reasonable target.

A little over a month ago now, Macca was quoted in an article talking about how he thinks age group athletes are too focused on time and instead should be focused on competing on ‘challenging’ courses.

I get what he’s talking about and yet time is very important to me as it is for many other athletes. I want to go fast and I want a fast time. 

Time targets help motivate me. Whether I achieve the time I would like is less relevant the longer I race - though its importance doesn’t diminish. 

I’m not racing to go slower - though sometimes it may seem like it :) And it’s because no one can go faster race after race that I have found other reasons to want to be Iron-fit and these reasons are far more important.

In a way a fast time is like getting a great grade in high school or university. Its importance fades dramatically over time.

In that sense Macca is right, I suppose. Time isn’t relevant and we put far too much emphasis on it. Its relevancy fades far faster than we appreciate in the moment. But I still want to be as fast as I can for as long as I can and I make no apologies for that.

Back to the bike course! Is Whistler a 5 hour bike? I don’t think so. Would 5:30 be a good time? I think so. 5:45? 6? I would expect to be in T2 within six hours.

Being fast in the water and on two wheels - as long as I haven’t hammered myself - would be ideal. I’ll have banked both time and energy for the marathon. Two huge positives. That will be part of my race strategy - as it is for every triathlon. Easier said than done as I’ve found out. Race execution is an art.

For those who choose to hammer or try to hammer on the bike, into a head wind, prepare to walk a lot. That would be unfortunate in part because the run course is beautiful and is open to being fast.

All that said, I don’t have any real feel for a time target heading into the race. My focus is on being focused from start to finish. My objective is to be steady and strong and to take advantage of the weather and the course.

Ten-something always has a positive attraction. Time resists control. But one can master time - from time to time.

Vancouver half iron results - PB

2013 - 52nd overall, 3rd in AG  4:39:58      31:32   2:37:48   1:27:20

2012  - 32nd overall, 7th in AG  4:45:33     31:15   2:41:48   1:29:37

2011  - 47th overall, 4th in AG   4:53:59     32:49   2:43:14   1:34:37

2010  - 30th overall, 3rd in AG   4:50:22     32:35   2:41:28   1:32:35

2009  - 24th overall, 2nd in AG  4:42:01     33:37   2:35:15   1:29:53

Swimming through the prism of Ironman

The past three days were all about swimming - FAST or at least that was a key objective.

Swim fast and meet the qualifying standards for the FINA 2014 World Masters Championships to be held in Montreal in late July/early August. (The swimming schedule hasn’t yet to be released.)

First, I haven’t YET qualified in any event. Here are the standards.

Second, I am however now closer to qualifying in two events: 50m Free and 100m Free.

At the BC Provincial swimming championships this weekend at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre, I swam 33.29 for the 50m. The qualifying FINA time is 33.0.

I swam the 100m in 1:16.94. The qualifying standard is 1:15:30.

Both of those times are PBs for me.

The 50m one is an incremental one as I swam 33.54 at the Love to Swim meet in February. 

As for the 100m, I swam 1:21.19 at that February meet and 1:24.58 at a meet at the University of British Columbia last November. Great progress.

Both the 50m and the 100m are about red-lining one’s effort from start to finish. I’m confident I achieved that part of the equation and I’m as confident that I can go faster with a bit more focus on a relaxed right arm catch/pull as well as perfecting my dive from the block and flip turning with power.

This weekend I also set meet PBs for the 200m (2:56.64), the 400m (6:13.56) and the 800m (13:10.00). The qualifying times for each are: 2:47, 5:50 and 12:20.

Since November, I’ve knocked 12 seconds off my 200m time, more than half a minute off my 400m time and more than one minute off the 800m.

The 400m time this weekend is the most puzzling for me. In training I now regularly swim slightly below 6 minutes. Last week I swam a 6:02 in the middle of a pyramid session after being out of the pool for about two weeks. I’ll chalk it up to ‘stuff happens when racing’. The dive? Started too fast? A few poorly executed flip turns? A poor finishing reach? 

One competitor said he thought this pool was a slow one. But that doesn’t explain why I swam the 50m and 100m so well. So perhaps that’s fishing too deep!

On Friday, I started the meet with a 25:32.45 time for the 1500m. I wasn’t impressed. In February I had swum six seconds faster. I could point to several ‘life’ reasons but I won’t. I’ll chalk it up to a ‘lower-than-expected energy’ moment.

No decision has been made on going to Montreal. That will be made later, in part based on qualifying!

For now, all of the swimming that I do is through the prism of the 3.8km that I need to ‘race’ on August 25th at Ironman Canada in Whistler. It will be a two-lap course in Alta Lake.

Here’s how I look at where I am now in terms of Ironman swim fitness. It’s Tim’s rough math, so bear with me: 1500m x 2.53 = 3.8km. So my 1.5k effort becomes a 1:04/1:05 Ironman swim.

My 800m time is equivalent to 1:02/1:03.

My 400m time equates to a 59 minute Ironman swim split.

Now obviously, the effort that I put into the 400m - which I have to say felt was the hardest I’d ever swum that distance - is one that I can’t sustain for 3.8km. I couldn’t have sustained it for another 25m. So a Sub 1 hour Ironman swim is - for now - out of reach.

The stats tell me that I’m in the ballpark, fitness wise, for a 1:05-1:10 swim.

At first thought, I’d be depressed. Will I ever get close to the one-hour mark?

There are two huge race-day positives to take into account that will generate speed: my wetsuit and the drafting/two-lap current effect. Most of the training I do is with a pull buoy; all racing this weekend was without it. The wetsuit is my race day pull buoy. Ah, cold open water swims.

When Margreet and I raced in Ironman Australia in Forster, it was a two-lap course in a confined area and there was a superb whirlpool that helped propel everyone on the second lap. I’m hopeful of something similar at Whistler.

Of course the most important component to what I achieve at Ironman Canada is for me to keep swimming relatively fast and to start swimming longer sets. 

I’m a person, an athlete, who is methodical. Perhaps you’ve gathered. And the confidence that I have ahead of a race is directly related to the training I’ve completed. Once a week, every week until August 25th, I will swim one long set with minimal stops to replicate the time in motion and steady effort needed in Alta Lake.

Tomorrow though I’m sleeping in. Coach’s orders.

April Fool's splits

The numbers tell of a not so flat course. And also of perhaps a slight loss of focus from 15k-17k.

4:23
3:49
3:58
4:18
4:36

5k in 21:06

4:24
4:39
4:04
3:56
4:30

10k in 42:38

4:21
4:19
4:19
4:16
4:48

5:04
4:47
4:17
3:54
3:58
4:41 for the final 1.2k

I was third in the 45-49 age group which is cool given that I'm about to age up. However, I shouldn't rush as I would have been fourth in the 50-54 age group today. Sheesh.

April Fool's half marathon

Well, another half marathon and another solid effort. I ran 1:31:06 today at the Sunshine Coast April Fool's half.


2002 Lake Macquarie 1:31:21 4:21/km

2003 Sydney (Homebush) 1:31:17 4:20.9/km

2005 Sydney ½ marathon 1:32:48 4:25.2/km

2005 Sydney (Opera House) 1:32:57 4:25.7/km

2006 Sydney (Sept) 1:30:15 4:17.9/km

2006 Sydney 1:33:19 4:26.7/km

2006 Lake Mac 1:30.25 4:18.4/km

2007 Sydney (May) 1:31:39 4:21.9/km

2008 Gibsons (April) 1.31.06

2008 Vancouver (June) 1.30.17

2009 Vancouver First Half 1.29.06

2012 First Half half (Feb) 1:33:30

Everson, WA half (Mar) 1:32:09

Gibsons half (Apr) 1:30:10 - 3rd in my age group

2013 First Half half (Feb) 1:31:14

Gibsons half (Apr) 1:31:06  - 3rd in my age group

Quitting is underrated

http://www.insightoftheday.com/quote.asp

Some time ago I signed up for 'insight of the day'. It's a quote, usually motivational and on Friday's I receive a 'story' in my inbox. Today's story is about the power and necessity of quitting.

Here are a few excerpts.

****

I think quitting is underrated.

... I was more afraid of what other people would think about my "quitting" than I was about wasting more moments of my life.

And so I happily wasted a portion of my life in exchange for avoiding the criticisms and opinions of others.

The bottom line is that I didn't quit because I was scared. It's fear that kept me paralyzed for years and years.

***

•              I am going to quit making decisions based on fear. (Obvious exceptions include any scenario involving hungry wild animals chasing me.)

•              I am going to quit shielding my talents, my skills and my power.

•              I'm going to quit using the trick of "playing small" and downplaying my talents as a way to win approval, validation and attention from others.

•              I am going to quit looking for answers in places outside myself.

•              I am going to quit making "realistic" decisions that steer me away from making a powerful impact on the world.

•              I am going to quit thinking that extreme success is reserved for "other people."

•              And I'm going to quit letting the thoughts, opinions, or insecurities of others direct decisions about my life.

****

"Do you have the courage to quit NOW?"

*****

I've come to view quitting as an important virtue. Quitting something that doesn't belong in your life means that you value your commitment to you above most everything else.

If we all did that, I'm afraid we'd unleash an epidemic of happy and well-adjusted people unlike the world has ever seen.

In an effort to jumpstart such an "epidemic," here's something else I'm suggesting we all quit:

The idea that quitting is in some way a bad thing.

Most people you ask on the street would probably say "quitting" is a bad thing. That's because they've been taught that "Winners never quit and quitters never win."

The type of quitting I'm talking about has nothing to do with what you actually want to achieve in your life. There's no sane reason anyone would quit the pursuit of that.

The quitting I'm recommending applies to all of the other things you feel are standing in your way of pursuing what you want.

******

So when's the right time to QUIT?

You quit as soon as you realize that your time could be better spent in another way. You quit the minute it becomes clear that you're living your life for someone or something else instead of living it for you.

In my experience, doing this on a regular basis is one of the scariest things you can do. It brings you right up to the edge of your comfort zone where you're forced to make a choice:

Do you live your life based on how you want to live it? Or do you live your life based on how you think others want you to live it?

Do yourself a favor. Do the world a favor. QUIT something.

Jason Leister

Motivational quotes

Margreet came across this list:

http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/12-great-motivational-quotes-for-2013.html?nav=next


I particularly like this one:

"A real decision is measured by the fact that you've taken a new action. If there's no action, you haven't truly decided."
Tony Robbins

24 Weeks to an Ironman

Six months. 24 weeks. That's what lies between yesterday and August 25th.

The title of this post was inspired from what I consider to be one of the top triathlon training resources in our home library:  “Start to Finish: 24 Weeks to an Endurance Triathlon” written by Paul Huddle and Roch Frey.

Whenever someone asks for advice and makes it clear they don’t want to hire a coach despite our encouragement, Margreet and I direct them to this book.

It’s simple. If you’re serious about finishing an Ironman, you need to know what’s involved and you must have a plan.

While I’m convinced that most people are capable of becoming an Ironman, it’s disconcerting that so few are willing to do the work because that’s what I enjoy the most. I love to train. 

Ironman - unfortunately - has become for many participants a one-time, check-it-off-the-list event. But that’s never been how I’ve seen it.

To me Ironman is about being healthy, day in and day out, week in and week out. It’s a life long focus on being fit. 

I've never started an Ironman thinking: I hope I finish; I've always thought: What will I accomplish today. One reality is that you can't control all that happens during a race but that's a topic for another post.

When Margreet and I first entered long-distance triathlon we did so in Sydney with a coach, John Hill, and a group of motivated, like-minded athletes. We were a real mix in terms of level of experience and technical expertise. What set us apart and brought us together was the commitment we made to be better year in and year out - emphasis on year.

The importance of consistency was hammered into us; and the results more often that not bore that out. 

Another reality of the sport, however, is that Ironman can be cruel no matter one's training - so you better be in it for something other than race day. 

Back then - a decade ago, we had to qualify at a half ironman in order to get a chance to start Ironman Australia. It's too bad that's no longer the case.

Having to qualify was frustrating because it was hard. It also was ideal because it reinforced the work ethic necessary to succeed in getting to the start line.

I take triathlon seriously in that I set aside a considerable amount of time and energy - and money - to compete. I now say compete because I set out to be competitive. It's about me challenging me. 

I don't start an Ironman simply to finish. That's because I embrace the joy of training and the fitness that emerges from it; I want to excel on race day. I'm all in.

What’s important about the next 24 weeks? Well, this is where my focus must and will be sharper. It starts now. Not tomorrow, not next week. From here on in, I will do all that I can to convince myself that I'm ready. That conviction is based in swim, bike and run. It's simple.

I’ve been preparing for this ‘24-week block’ by training to train. That’s a phrase I saw on an Endurance Corner post where I’ve been sifting through a slew of coaching advice. There’s a great series of ‘How to qualify for Kona’ columns on the site that I highly recommend - whether Kona is an objective or not.

What I like most about Huddle, Frey and the Endurance Corner coaches - including Gordo Byrne - is that they are immersed in long-distance triathlon. The same was true of the two key coaches I've worked with in the past. To me this is critically important if you seek a sense of achievement within the sport.

These past two months have been a time to build a base in the pool, on the trainer and on the treadmill as well as tweak my bike position. I’ve done that. Now I’m ready for the next level.

It’s not about volume per se, though there will be a slow increase in volume and/or time spent in each of the three disciplines. It’s much more about making each workout the highest value it can be. Like everyone else, there are endless demands on my time. Ironman is great at helping me prioritize.

As Randy Jackson says to competitors on American Idol, I’m in it to win it. Figuratively that is. For me, it's all about being as focused as I can on my effort and commitment to training. 

Qualifying times

For me, there is something to be said for swimming frequently. Tonight I felt awesome in the water, hours after debating whether to take the evening off. I'm very happy I didn't.

The coach - without advanced warning and without calling them anything out of the ordinary - had us swim a consecutive series of all-out 50m, 100m, 200m and 400m. We also had a super easy repetition of each distance in between with lots of recovery time too.

Whatever was in the water worked for everyone else too. Times dropped across the four lanes.

I swam a mid-30 50m, a 1:22 100m, a 2:44 200m and my first Sub 6 400m: 5:58. There's something to be said about swimming fast regularly.

It's a sign - yet another reminder - that being focused with training and consistent with it does translate into improvement, sometimes unexpectedly, even when you think you're having a low energy day.

I swam hard and I know that I can swim with still greater effort.

The 200m time is a personal best and it's beneath the 2:47 that I would need to have in a meet to qualify for that event at the Montreal Worlds 2014. I swam a 3:09 in this event at the swim meet at UBC in the fall.

As for the 400m, it's what I consider to be my first real Sub 6 effort. About a month ago we did a 400m TT to start the year and I swam 6:52. I wasn't impressed and I let the coach know that I wanted some additional advice. To her credit, I got it.

I had two years ago swum a 6:18 and then got stuck.

What do I think I've done to improve:

I've slowed down my arm rotation. I've stopped trying to teach the water a lesson with each stoke. My reach is significantly more extended. I'm actually catching and pulling myself through the water. I'm flip turning and streamlining. I'm 'trying' to breathe every third stroke. I'm doing all that I can to be aero in the water. I am swimming in the 'box' that a previous coach sketched for me.

While I've been thinking of a Sub 6 for more than a year, I hadn't expected to achieve it this week. I swam a second TT in late January of 6:32 and at the meet on Sunday I swam 6:30 (with a goggles malfunction).

I always want to go faster. It's part of who I am, though I realize that it's not something that can be rushed.

The Sub 6 though is huge and here's why. If I can - over the next few months - swim that pace at a slightly easier level of effort then a 1-hour Ironman swim comes squarely into focus. I'd be seriously impressed with myself in reaching that level.

I would see a 1-hour Ironman swim split as a sign that I've reached a new level in the sport. My fastest swim split is 1:03. I've dreamt of a 1-hour or slightly faster time for a decade.

And so now I'm more motivated than ever.

In addition, I've now moved within reach of the qualifying standard of 5:50 that I would need to enter this event at the Montreal Worlds. Four days ago that time seemed so far out of reach that I'd put it out of my mind. Now, it's front and centre.

Love to Swim? Yes

After my third indoor swimming competition, I'm a little wiser and also know that there's still a lot more to learn. Yesterday was the English Bay Swim Club's Love to Swim meet at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre.

For some reason I swam most of my events goggles-optional, though that doesn't mean 'intentional'. I recommend swimming with goggles - perhaps double-capped too - and I'll focus on that for the next meet - Provincials April 26-28 in Vancouver.

At the next Titans Flippin' Tuesday session on March 5th, I will look to practice my diving skills along with perfecting my turns. I flip turned every time at yesterday's meet; a year ago I didn't know how to flip.

What did I get from this latest meet? First and foremost, I have some early season benchmarks, in particular for the 1500m. It's the fastest 1500m that I have swum in recent years - and as best I know ever.

Yesterday I swam 25:26.76 - which made me 1st among one in my age group. Ha! Once relegated to the slowest lane where I swam with fins in a losing effort to keep up with superswift kids, I now have a 'gold' medal performance :)

What I've learned most over the years is to celebrate my successes - with a grain of salt.

My objective for the 1500m was to start slower than I knew I could swim and then build. It was a good strategy though I might revise it a bit for the next meet. I might opt for a fast start and then ease into a rhythm that is 'comfortably uncomfortable' - in other words, a half ironman or ironman pace.

I am usually good at counting laps but not yesterday. I lost count of the 60 x 25m laps very early and so practiced my sighting skills - keen to see a bell ringing for me, the signal for the final 50m. Apparently I was sighting a lot. Perhaps that's because it seemed to take a lot longer than I expected - though my anticipation of the bell and some frantic on-deck signals from Titans teammate Simon encouraged me to swim the last few hundred metres as fast as I could.

I was ecstatic to finally see the bell and hammered the last 50m. I don't think I had much left in the tank so I'll look to expand the tank a bit ahead of April.

For comparison, I looked up my swim times from some recent triathlons.

I rarely do Olympic distance events, which start with a 1500m swim. The one exception has been the Squamish Triathlon which I have raced the last three years.

In 2012: I swam 25:29. In 2011, it was 26:20. And in 2010, I clocked 25:56. Last year I 'sort' of tapered ahead of the race and so I was fresh; the previous year I had completed a massive training day on the Saturday and had nothing.

The key change for me has been to swim calmer for which I credit Coach Roseline Mondor-Grimm.

So yesterday's time is a positive one, in particular given that it's so early in the year. I am convinced that a Sub 25 swim is within my reach and I intend to get it this season.

What will that mean for a longer distance swim? Ideally it will translate into a faster, more efficient one. And the intent of a faster swim as a triathlete is to exit the water with a stronger group of competitors. If challenging yourself is an objective, as it is for me, then you want athletes at least as fit as yourself either chasing you or in the near 'legal' distance.

I have done seven half ironmans (mostly starting with 1900m in the water) in the last four years: Vancouver four times, Oliver twice and Sooke once. (And I have three Ironman Canada swims in those four years too but I won't look at those results today.)

My times in Vancouver have steadily fallen: 31:15 (2012), 32:49 (2011), 32:35 (2010) and 33:32 (2009). My target for this year: Sub 31.

In Oliver - which is a 2k course - I swam 38:32 (2012*) and 34:16 (2010). *The course last year wasn't accurate, I know that because I was in great form and swam very well. Others agreed. That said, everyone does the same course so it didn't alter the overall results - though it gave me pause for thought as I ran for my bike. Learning to compartmentalize is a great skill for a triathlete, one that I continue to develop.

In Sooke I took 32:09 (2011).

The progression in my swim times is positive. In both the 1500m and the 1900m, I am stopping the clock faster and faster. That's all I can ask for. Well, I can ask for still faster times :) and I do.

***

As for the swim meet itself, I did four events.

In the first - the 400m, I lost my goggles immediately after diving off the blocks and stopped as immediately to reset them. So much for the starting momentum. Coach Roseline says the start/stop cost me 5-10 seconds. The disturbance did fire me up and I swam hard to recatch the swimmers in the adjacent lanes. It ended up being my fastest 400m in recent months but not what I think is an accurate  reflection of my fitness at the moment.

I was, however, particularly happy with both my 100m and 50m efforts - and times. I enjoy these timetrial efforts: head down, breathing deeply and as little as I can, kicking and reaching long for the timing mat.

As it turns out my 50m split was very close to the qualifying time that I would need to attend the FINA World Championships in Montreal in 2014: 33.54 ME vs 33.0 FINA.

I also believe I can make the 100m standard, given that yesterday I was somewhat slowed by having to pull my goggles out of my mouth as I was in motion: 1:21.19 ME vs 1:15.30 FINA.

400m .. 47.92, 1:35.50, 2:25.73, 6:30.28  (6th)

100m .. 1:21.19  (39.43)  (7th)

50m .. 33.54 (5th)

1500m .. 25:26.76 (1st)

Other targets for Montreal, I would need to swim 5:50.00 in the 400m and 12:20.00 for the 800m. I did swim Sub 6 once in training last summer.

See you at the pool.

Half marathon stats

2002 Lake Macquarie 1:31:21 4:21/km

2003 Sydney (Homebush) 1:31:17 4:20.9/km

2005 Sydney ½ marathon 1:32:48 4:25.2/km

2005 Sydney (Opera House) 1:32:57 4:25.7/km

2006 Sydney (Sept) 1:30:15 4:17.9/km

2006 Sydney 1:33:19 4:26.7/km

2006 Lake Mac 1:30.25 4:18.4/km

2007 Sydney (May) 1:31:39 4:21.9/km

2008 Gibsons (April) 1.31.06

2008 Vancouver (June) 1.30.17

2009 Vancouver First Half 1.29.06

2012 First Half half (Feb) 1:33:30

Everson, WA half (Mar) 1:32:09

Gibsons half (Apr) 1:30:10

2013 First Half half (Feb) 1:31:14

*I'm impressed with my consistency :)

Five things

The following is the end result of a bit of introspection and reading on how to refocus myself for the year ahead.


Strengthen my strengths
- The success I have now and the potential for more of it lies in taking advantage of my natural strengths and making them stronger. As an athlete, that means trust in my training.

Be more self-aware
- The best thing I can do to improve my effectiveness is to become more aware of what motivates me and my decision-making. Transparency is critical.

Have more enduring faith in myself and others
 - Be more confident in my abilities, knowledge and expertise. Be more open to seeing good in others. Pause first, breathe second and then - maybe - respond.

De-personalize
 - Establish a conflict-free zone and put myself in the middle.  Find a way to challenge others to be better.

Make a conscious decision to focus on the positives
 - See the sun through the rain.

Tweaking my swim

I’ve been swimming regularly and have had many coaches over the last decade. Yet I’ve been frustrated that I’m not getting much faster.

At times in recent years I’ve pulled off faster sprints over 25m, 50m and 100m.

Endurance isn’t an issue - at least not in the sense that I can get in the water and swim continuously for a solid hour or longer with few breaks.

And so I recently told Coach Roseline that I wasn’t happy with my swim. I’m investing too much time for too little return. The purpose of my comment was: what do I need to do to swim faster?

Coach Roseline had a simple starting point: Stop fighting the water. 

And then, after a video review a few other tweaks were relayed to me:

Extend the forward entry arm/hand just a bit more.

Slow down my arms. It’s not a race to see how fast I can throw my arms forward.

Pull with focus. Anchor my hand, pull the water and then push it. Do this with effort when speed is the objective. But keep my arms moving forward above the water at the same speed.

Glide a little longer. In other words, increase the distance that I cover with each stroke.

Breathe less often. When I accelerate or when I get tired, I breathe every stroke.

And voila. 

I did an unexpected 400m TT on Friday and knocked 20 secs off the time I set about 10 days ago - which prompted my initial - recent - frustration.

I’m still not where I want to be in terms of swimming with less effort and generating more speed but it’s early in the season and now I have some concrete things to focus on in the water.