Support Local this Summer

Here we are at the start of another summer season. We have already had some great events taking place such as Iron Maori and Tinman and many more to come. I love my athletes to do quite a few local events as they build up to their main events at the end of summer. We are just so lucky here in New Zealand that we have so many really quality events on offer and there are so many reasons to get out there and support what is available in your local area. Doing so really helps to prepare for the main event in so many ways. You pick up race fitness that you just cannot accumulate from training alone, you can test your nutrition plan, and your equipment to make sure you have everything dialed in perfectly before your main event, and you learn your pre race routines so that when you go to your main event you don’t feel flustered, you can just get to it without the nerves, almost like a robot. Also when you race you can see where maybe you are still lacking in your training and address that, plus it blows out all the cobwebs. First race of the season, even for those that have been in the sport a while, you realise you have forgotten usually a couple of things you learnt last season, it just re jogs the old memory into action. 

The swim start can be something that fills many with quite a few nerves. Luckily many races have now gone to wavestarts or rolling starts which is much less daunting, but if training for IMNZ it is maybe the last(??) mass start that still takes place. So to prepare for that it is just so helpful to do several events, it could be short triathlons, or swim only races but just getting used to dealing with the heart rate spiking, people on either side of you or constantly tapping at your feet,  and just getting used to extra restriction of the wetsuit and the effect on the breathing with the nerves on race morning will just really help on the day when you do have a big mass start like that. If you have put yourself outside of your comfort zone several times, then you can relax about the concept of the swim start and just know that you will be able to cope with it. There are quite a few swim race series throughout the country. I know of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Waikato, Nelson and the National Open water swim series which has events in many places over the country, so get out there and build up that confidence. 

The thing I most love about so many of our local triathlons is they really try and cater to a lot of groups of people. Usually there are several distances of triathlon not just the “main event” incorporating try a tri which are short triathlons perfect for those dipping their toes in for the first time. Also it’s possible for the whole family to take part in something with usually a junior race for teens, and kids events for the youngsters. Most events have a duathlon option for those that just don’t want to swim, and often many now provide an aquabike which is just perfect for those that want to push hard on the swim and bike but may have another event quite soon and don’t want to push the run, or for those with a run injury it’s a great way to still get out there and have fun competing. 

When I encourage some of my athletes to give it a go before a more major event like 70.3 or Ironman, a common worry is that they are worried they are going to come last or hold up the volunteers. I do understand this, as when I first started it was a major worry for me too, but unfortunately it is a bit of a self fulfilling prophecy. If everyone is worried about being near the end, then you just get less and less people competing and you get a field that is skewed to the top end which is just not what triathlon is about. I wish that people that consider themselves slower, could see just how inspiring they are. When I first started in triathlon I would often hear about Ironman and the distances involved, I remember seeing Cameron Brown featuring every year on the news before IMNZ and I just thought he was a crazy guy and I actually thought he was just one of a handful of people that did the race. It wasn’t until I saw full coverage on the TV one day of IM Western Australia and I was gobsmacked to see people of all ages, all different body types racing, and I saw them reach the finish line. That is what inspired me to give my first Ironman a go, it was those people, once I saw them finish, I knew that it was a possibility for myself. What people don’t realise when they race, is that there maybe someone on the sidelines watching that would love to give it a go but just doesn’t have the courage yet, and maybe you can pass that courage on to them. 

The other worry is the stress of cut off times. I hate cutoffs as it is just puts extra pressure on people’s shoulders but I understand why they have to be there. With local events there are ways of making your own individual challenge to take this pressure off so someone can just really do their best and enjoy their day. We did this last year with an amazing lady I coached (Holly) at Oxman. We knew the bike cut off was going to be touch and go for her, and it was just creating a lot of anxiety. So we spoke to the organisers, we had Holly do the swim, the first lap of the bike (46k), she then came onto the run and ran the full 21k when there were lots of people around making it way more fun for her. She then went home and biked an extra 46k herself (which would have been truly mentally hard to do) and she ticked off the full event. We of course had told the organisers so they didn’t think she was trying to cheat by not doing the full bike course. She still competed the whole distance, but in a much more enjoyable way for her. Another event that I think is doing such a good job of this is Rotorua Suffer. They have extra early starts for some people at 5.15am if they are worried about the bike cut off. The bike course is extremely challenging so they have some great things in place to make sure people get to head out onto the run course if they need it. They will put some people straight onto the run course a lap early if needed, and they will also turn people around a bit early from the far turn around if needed. So some people may not cover the full bike, but instead of being swept off the course they can head onto the run and finish the event. I love this as it takes that stress away, the goal can then be for some people to just see how far they get on the bike, and then maybe come back the next  year and try and beat that. It also means that if really challenging weather hits, or a mechanical issue, you’re not just swept off in a DNF, you can do what you can with your day and still get out on the run. 

So get involved this summer. We really are so lucky to have these events. Training for a long period of time can be grueling, but having a race to do every so often, makes it so much more enjoyable, and disrupts any monotony. You’ll get stronger and you’ll learn a lot so for your big goal it can all come together the way you want it to.