Post Race Debrief

Job done! Well I say done, what I really mean is the day is over. As my final blog post from this years Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon I'm going to take you through my prep last night and the sequence of events from today. Last night after a breeze block sized lasagne I relaxed watching a film and some old school Friends episodes. I had all my bag and kit prep completed by 9 and got myself tucked up in bed by 10. The alarm was set for 3:15! I also had a reserve alarm set for 3:30 as a just in case. All the about the risk management. I was very nervous as I got into bed and maybe even a little over tired. I managed to nod off but had a very restless sleep. Waking up at 2am and then 3am I decided to get up before the alarm. A bowl of porridge at 3:45 almost 4 hours before race start! Walking towards the venue and setting up my transition I was buzzing! Still nervous about the swim at this stage but looking forward to ticking a triathlon off the bucket list! Coaches picked us up and took us to the swim start where we boarded the ferry for Alcatraz! It was bitterly cold this morning and everyone was wrapped up in their wetsuits sitting on the ferry trying to keep warm. I've met some lovely people over the last couple of days and shared lots of good conversation on the ferry whilst we sat and waited for over an hour to set off. Then the race director made an announcement that 2000 athletes didn't want to hear. The swim was cancelled! The main reason why most people enter this Triathlon is for the swim leg! The mood and atmosphere around the site changed in an instant! The swim was cancelled for safety reasons, the first time in the events 37 year history! The support staff that were due to be on paddle boards and kayaks during the swim were struggling to control their vessels and deemed the water too choppy and currents too strong. They even thought about reducing the swim by 2km and having a 400m run in, but still it was deemed unsafe for that. The even had just become a bike/run event. After transferring all athletes back to transition the bike route would start in a time trial method. The bike route was pretty cool! It was very scenic and offered great views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Now I did think that Chicago was nicknamed the Windy City! After today I beg to differ! Even the local news had confirmed 6 foot waves in nearby Lake Tahoe! This made my descents on my bike a little more challenging as I have large rims on my wheels! The run course was flat for the first and last 2 miles, with a middle 4 miles consisting of 2 large climbs and lots of steps! I was able to get through this without stopping! In fact I was able to run 8 miles today including hills in the same time it took me to run 6 miles in New York! I finished overall in 1025 position from a field of 2000. That was 108 from 144 in my age group 30-34. It was also 874 of 1416 males. My finish time was 2:34, I could have knocked some time off this had I known the course and also pushed harder in the run. The race organisers have confirmed that all participants from today's race have a guaranteed entry for next year should they want it. Although I see this as unfinished business, is it worth the £660 entry fee and then flight on top!? Post race saw me receive a free massage from the organisers. I then chilled out and got some dinner, went for Mexican and tacos! Obviously managed to get a cheeky margarita in! Was nice not having a nutrition plan or diet holding me back. I'm now about to get some rest and recovery as tomorrow I plan to cycle to local town Sausalito by going across the Golden Gate Bridge. I have every meal and restaurant planned that consists of burgers, pancakes, ice cream and whatever else I've missed out on! I then plan to head over to Alcatraz on Tuesday to have a tour of the island. This may make up for some of the disappointment from today. I land back home on Thursday, only to fly out on Binoy's Stag Do several hours later! Looking forward to the time away already! Over the next few days I will start to look at what events I can put into the calendar next year, Alpe Dhuez is one that i would like to do. I also want to book in for an Olympic distance event this summer so I can put some good training to use. That's all for now, until next time...

Course Overview

This is probably going to be my last blog post before the race. There will be many updates on my Instagram story tomorrow as I head down to the transition area to check in and rack my bike. Looking forward to getting my hands on some merchandise and catching up with other athletes.

So the race weekend kicked off tonight with a Pro Panel tips along with a Q&A session. I only just made it there in time as my uber driver got lost! Ended up costing 3x as much which I’ve asked for a refund! Anyway, the evening was a good one, lots of tips and tricks and lots to take in. It’s coming round quick now, before I know it the expo will be over and I’ll be on the ferry heading out to the rock!

So let me talk you through race day and an overview of the course. This is a Triathlon like no other! The reason for it being called “Escape From Alcatraz” is due to the start position. A ferry takes all 2000 athletes and stops next to Alcatraz (the rock). Then within 7 minutes all 2000 are in the water! The swim is a 1.5 mile south swim, sighting to the south and letting the current move you along the bay.

As it stands the swim course could be changed based on the weather conditions. If the fog comes into the bay then we won’t be able to see San Francisco. It also means the currents will be stronger and could pull swimmers out to the middle of the bay rather than along the shore and towards transition. That means they will bring us closer and shorten the course. I find out more on this tomorrow.

Once I exit the swim I have a 0.5 mile run into transition. This is one of the longer transition runs I would have had to make. The bike course is flat to start and finish with multiple climbs and descents throughout. Total distance for the cycle is 18 miles.

The run is 8 miles on a route that includes the infamous sand ladder! This comes after 4 miles worth of running, the sand ladder takes me from the coast and beach up 400 steps! From what I’ve been told, even the pros use the ropes along the side for additional support!

The pictures highlight the route and also the elevation gain for both bike and run. As you can see there are some steep sections but flat finishes to both!

I managed to get out on the bike earlier today, not only to test that I had set it up and built it correctly I also wanted to test riding up Scott St which looks and was pretty steep! So steep that I had to lean forward when pedalling as to not perform a wheelie and fall back off the bike! Now that I tackled that street I feel I can deal with whatever the course throws at me!

Time for me to get my last long nights rest in as tomorrow night will be restless and nerves keeping me awake! In a way it’s a blessing the Warriors lost tonight, not just so I can have a drink during game 5 on Monday but mainly due to the fact the area would have been like a carnival atmosphere!

Night!

“Don’t get eaten by a shark”

Upon gaining entry into the 2017 Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon, it dawned on me early on that California is known for regular spotting of a fairly well known breed of shark! Great Whites! Gulp!

Multiple things went through my head when I started to think about the swim and joining some of the most notorious sharks in the sea, in their own domain! Like how do I make myself look less appealing to them for breakfast!? I know, let me put on a full length neoprene wet suit (all black) and splash around for an hour! That’s should do it right! Probably not the best idea but I’m going to go by a rule of, don’t be the fastest swimmer and definitely don’t be the last! So that would leave me somewhere in the middle of the pack! Let’s hope I get lucky with what wave I jump off the ferry in!

The onslaught of shark comments has been a constant since I got into this race. You can see from the pic the variety of what I’ve been sent over the last few months, pictures, snap chats, presents! It’s almost been the first thing people say to me when I tell them what I’m off to do. It’s also been the last thing people have said to me before I left the UK to come out here, “don’t get eaten by a shark”.

I think the joke and wind up peaked at Christmas when The Patricks bought me Shark Repellent! It seems like it would be pretty simple to use, the instructions state to open the packet, release a black cloud, stay in the black cloud! Unfortunately I won’t have any room to carry this packet in the swim. So going to have to brave it! I’m sorry Con/Michelle but we will have to keep our fingers and toes crossed that I make it to shore with all mine in tact!

I thought I had escaped the barrage of shark comments when I left the UK shores but that hasn’t been the case. Every Uber driver that I’ve had in San Fran so far has mentioned the sharks as the first response to me telling them why I’m over here! I’m starting to think there’s a conspiracy!

Even the organisers let you know about it, this below was received back in March when providing an update to all participants on swim tips and information.

Yes, there is marine life in San Francisco Bay including seals, sea lions and sharks. The half dozen different types of sharks within San Francisco Bay are usually small, three to four feet in length, and hang out well below the surface of the water and have no interest in Escape participants. Larger sharks do live outside of the Bay where the water is saltier. Sharks of any significant size do not generally come into the Bay because, especially this year, of the brackish water composition (half salt and half fresh water runoff). The San Francisco Bay has 500 miles of Sierra snow melt running into it, so between the fresh water and the silt, the big sharks usually stay away from the Bay’s waters. Harbor seals and sea lions may come by to see what swimmers are up to due to their curious temperaments, but the sheer numbers of swimmers, lifeguard vessels, and support boats keep them at a distance.

So in case you don’t see me again, good afternoon, good evening, goodnight!

Samuel has left the building…

So this blog update comes from above the clouds on Southwest Airlines Flight 262 from Las Vegas to San Francisco.

Vegas was fun, not quite as chilled as I would have hoped. I did manage to get a 500m swim in at the hotel, which was in a 55m pool, much more realistic than than the 25m I’ve trained in to date. I did however give the run down Las Vegas Boulevard a miss. My legs are feeling a little heavy after a whooping total of 60,112 steps since Monday! That equals 22.7 miles! Not what I had in mind but my legs feel strong at the same time heavy!

My time in Nevada has now come to an end and shit is about to get real! The nerves are starting to kick in a little more now as race day fast approaches. I have a busy Saturday with race check In so I plan to rest up over the remainder of today and tomorrow.

Watch out for a couple more posts over the next day or so, on my nutrition since I’ve been the other side of the pond and also an overview of the course.

Too many to Tri

You may or may not know this about me but when it comes to making decisions I am the most indecisive person you can meet! This mainly gets worse when the decision is a small one. Ask any of my family and friends and they will confirm! I think this may be down to my slight OCD and perfectionist traits.

To give you some examples of my decisiveness and not holding up on making a decision, I have made many an impulsive purchase over the years without hesitation! These usually aren’t cheap decisions and come at a price, MacBook, bike (bikes), watches, clothes, cars and most recently a house!

At the other end of the spectrum I can spend sometimes days or weeks making decisions over the smallest things. Even earlier this week when deciding what to bring away with me and how many watches to take (answer was 3 for those interested).

A prime example of this was my choice of tri suit for the race. I retired my original tri suits after New York and said that I would purchase new for the next event. So here I was 5 weeks away from the flight and a whole internet catalogue of different styles, sizes and colours! Like anything I normally take screen shots and send them to a few people to sense check and get an opinion. Then I ignore that and buy all of them to see what one fits (looks) best. The original 5 weren’t cutting it so I bought a 6th, this one was the vest style in the bedroom pic. Although this didn’t get the parents stamp of approval I did like it, so sent all the others back and bought the same suit in 2 different sizes to see if it fitted different and also with sleeves. So after 10 different suits and 2 different sizes I made my mind up, which was against what others liked and actually was what I wanted originally.

This ended up costing me more time ordering, trying on, sending back and claiming refunds than i would have preferred. However at the end of the day at least I’m going to look good on race day…in my eyes anyway!

Welcome to California

So I’ve now been in the Golden State for a whole 2 days and feel like I’ve already managed to see and do a fair bit! Had a decent flight out here watching 3 films and reading a book. Also managed to work on a couple of blog posts that will be with you in a few days. The aim of the game on Sunday was to stay awake for as long as possible. I had a little dip around 7 whilst the NBA was on but puckered up a little after some food. Zohra gave me a cheeky sleeping pill to help me through the night. I dropped off with a heavy head and managed to get a good sleep in waking up and getting out of bed around 8. I had unpacked most of my stuff on Sunday night and left just my bike to unpack and build Monday morning. Managed to get that all built and set, will be taking her for a spin on Thursday when I’m back. So after a morning getting myself unpacked and re packed for Vegas I set off for a little walk to the Golden Gate Bridge. What Zohra had told me should take 30 minutes took a little longer. Mainly to me stopping and taking the odd picture. Got a little coffee at the Warming Hut and sat taking in the view. All in all what was meant to be a little stroll to the bridge and back, ended up being at the end of the day, 10.2 miles and over 27,000 steps! Don't so decided to change the run for a swim today! The morning was obviously a little sunnier than I though but slightly more wind as I got a little colour on my face (burn). I didn’t even notice until I looked in the mirror last night. So I’ve flown into Vegas to meet up with my Aunty, Uncle and Cousin for a few days. Some well deserved downtime and rest, but I do need to head out for a little run and swim as I taper the week out. Staying at a suite in The Bellagio, which I have to say is amazing! We popped out for some dinner and a cheeky dabble on the roulette table! So my unlucky run from 12 years ago when I was last here has clearly continued. I lost again! The only highlight of the night was being asked for ID, not once, but twice! Not bad for a 34 year old man with some grey in his sideburns! Settled down to bed and clearly not got over the jet lag as I woke up at 3am feeling very refreshed and ready to go! Struggled to get back to sleep after that! Anyway now awake and heading off to get some breaky before going on a helicopter ride out to the Grand Canyon!

Everything but the Kitchen Sink

Today has consisted of watching Rugby, watching Football, seeing friends and what feels like packing my life away in to 3 different bags! The packing for this trip has been a lot harder than it was 2 years ago for New York Tri. When I went to the big apple it was summer time and hot, which made it easy to judge weather conditions and allowed me to pack just shorts and t-shirts. I also did a flying visit with a quick turnaround and a 4 night stay. This time I'm going to a city that is cooler in temp than the UK, broken up with 3 days in Vegas which looks like it's going to be hotter than the sun! So you can imagine I've had to plan for lots of different conditions. I've also had to take some additional kit this time with extra trainers required, these are for when I exit the swim and have to run half a mile to pick my bike up! I have managed to get everything in though. It's been a tight squeeze and one that could end up costing me as I'm 4kg over my limit! You may also notice that I have a new piece of kit in the Bonza Bike Box. I thought it was time to upgrade my original bike box with something that my bike deserves. What a great piece of kit this is! Simple to pack and pretty solid when closed. The other reason I had to get a new box was down to the US baggage handlers deciding they wanted to bust my last one open to get a sneak peek at the bike. I was then too late to make a claim for it on my insurance. So this upgrade has ended up costing a fair bit! I'm about to head to bed now to get some shut eye, long day of travelling tomorrow. I wonder if I'll sleep as good this time next week on the eve of the race!?

Time to Taper

The end of this week has been the tale of 2 lakes! My final week of training before I head into the weekend and start my week of tapering prior to race day. Thursday night saw me head down to Liquid Leisure in Datchet to brush off the open water swim cobwebs. You can spend as much time as you like in a pool swimming length after length but nothing compares to open water and no turns. I settled for a little 750m swim as I wanted to test my wet suit and new goggles. I went with my new aqua sphere polarised goggles and they seem ok, little mist coming half way through makes me think I may go with a different pair next week. I'll test my other ones in Vegas next week and make a decision. The water was a glorious 18 degrees and a beautiful evening. I did however stop too many times as I get nervous in lakes as hate being able to see the bottom! It's when it comes up and surprises you, that's when I panic! I don't know why! Need to snap out of that before next week. The lake had a fair bit of weed and leaves on the surface that I had to swim through at times. Overall it was a decent session and when I did put some freestyle stints in, I felt quick! I'm sure the chop in San Fran may have other ideas but we will see! From swimming in the lake to running around another, last night I stopped by Virginia Water on the way home from work to run a steady pace 4 miles. Half a mile into the run my battery died on my walkman, typical! Oh well they needed a charge before I go anyway. Such a scenic run with the lake, flowers, ruins and totem pole. I settled for a mid 9-10 minute mile pace, something similar to what I want to run next week. All week I've been trying to break down a knot in my left calf. It's still there and something I'm hoping I can get released when I touch down in San Fran. My only other current niggle is a twinge in my left knee. Felt when running down a hill last night. I'm hoping the next week of tapering will help, and the 15 hours of flights in between won't cause be too much hassle! I've started my Saturday off by watching a lack luster Lions performance in NZ. It's going to be some late night watching over the next week or so as the tour progresses. I will now be looking to pack all my stuff for the next 2 weeks including my bike, then hopefully out to see some friends on what seems a beautiful day.

Hercules Duathlon

So with only 2 weeks to go until Escape from Alcatraz I entered the Hercules Duathalon with my training partner Angela! This was a standard distance Duathlon and was a perfect brick session before the race. 10/40/5k distances were combined longer than what I need to do in San Fran. I have broken down the splits and stats later for each discipline. The event was held at Old Merchant Taylor’s school and the surrounding grounds. What a beautiful place and well organised event. The weather helped as it was glorious sunshine all morning. I wanted to treat this as training so didn’t push the pace at all and completed every leg at a comfortable pace. Training sessions like this always bring out little niggles and pains which you have to just bite your teeth and run through. My hamstrings were tight on the cycle and then my hip flexor on my right leg was in pain come the final 5k. This was 4 weeks post a 10k run in Frimley where I spent 3 days after the run walking like John Wayne! This time I made sure to focus on the recovery, stretching straight after the race followed my ice and massage on the legs. 3 days on this time round and my legs are in a better place, calves are a little tight but nothing this mornings swim and evening spin class didn’t sort out. Times for the disciplines are below, happy with the pace on both runs, could have gone quicker on the bike but didn’t want to push too hard. 10k Run - 9:13 min/mile 40k Cycle - 14.8 avg mph 5k Run - 9:38 min/mile I managed to burn off 2550 calories across the 3 hours which made me feel a little better when it came to stuffing my face with BBQ food later that day! I only have 2 more training days to go, tomorrow evening will be a lake swim and to finish the week I plan to run round Virginia Water on Friday.

The Final Countdown!

Just over 2 weeks until I participate in the 2017 Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon! Many of you would have heard me go on about this for some time now and it was the next event on my bucket list once I finished NYC Tri in 2015. Unable to enter last year due to a clash with a wedding but managed to get into the pot first time asking some 6 months ago. The event only has 2000 entrants and out of those only 200 non US. The spot I have is very precious and something I have not taken lightly when it comes to training. 2 years ago in Manhattan I found myself searching for a little bit more training well into the 10k. I ran a 1:20 10k that day, some 30 minutes slower than my PB. Not wanting a repeat of this in San Fran I have trained hard and feeling good for it. They say that finishing this event is a victory in itself let alone what time you post. So as I sat down 2 weeks ago and mapped out my final 4 weeks into race day I have kept a mixture of training throughout. The beginning of this stretch was set back by a slight hamstring strain, a result of pushing hard in a 10k race at the end of April. Since then I have included some hill runs and tonight I saw myself running pyramid sets up and down a multi story car park! Also threw in sets of stairs for the fun of it. All in prep for the sand ladder (which I'll explain in a future post)! So far I've stuck to 90% of the plan and have a busy week ahead! Sunday I race in the Hercules Duathlon as my final long training session. Now it's time to do the most important thing when training for an event....sleep!