PROUD DEVON LAD!!!!
Thursday 18 August 2011
7 lessons from 7 triathlons:- a Tim Harris perspective.
I am a big fan of challenges that rely on the ability to just keep going no matter what, and when Richard suggested completing a triathlon every day for a week it sounded right up my street even though I was just a recreational swimmer and cyclist my immediate thoughts were that it will just be a case of keep going.
But I found out it would take more than that...it would take lessons in economy, efficiency, technique, timing, confidence, fuelling and approach.
My training before the event was limited and fortunately not knowing how much the week would demand from my body was a blessing in disguise as it did not put me off the challenge. As I set about sorting and organising my kit for the week I had no idea how much I would learn in a week.
The fact that I had three extremely experienced and efficent Triathletes completing the challenge too gave me an opportunity to sponge of their approach, experience and knowledge, thrown in with that was a whole lot of inspiration. To see Richard, Steve and Kev set about on their swim, bike and run was both inspiring and motivating.
In addition to this I had members of Team Feat Triathlon club swimming, cycling and running with me all week too. I quickly learnt to settle in to my swim: my biking with Ivan, Jacks, Phil and (the star of my week)Nicky was an education every time I got on the saddle.
As I ticked off each triathlon off during the week, I was picking up tips and lessons in both preparation and performance. My pace remained steady throughout the week and conserving my energy was getting easier with every triathlon.
And so for Sunday...an Iron distance triathlon! Nervous is an understatement as I donned my wetsuit for the 3.8km swim, but the fact that Nicky was alongside me the whole way and that Richard, Steve and Kev were all in the same boat (not literally...that would be cheating) was a comfort and I was able to settle into my pace and having learnt some lessons in sighting earlier in the week I kept nicely on course!
The bike was still incredibly daunting but with Nicky and being joined by Phil and Jacks the ride was under way without me thinking about the massive distance that is 180km. With these guys around me I was constantly reminded to drink, eat and relax and the miles flew by, even a niggle in my knee form tendonitis was pushed to the back of my mind!! As I cycled I was confident about completing the marathon at the end of the day as running is something that I have always been able to just keep going.
The miles eventually dissappeared and then I was so elated to have finished the bike leg that I was on a high as I set about the run with another group that again included the ever supportive Nicky.
Feeding off what was a victory by completing the cycle I was a happy runner and confident with my pace and was hoping to catch a glimpse of Richard, Steve and Kev...I missed Richard who had done so well that he was already well into the last few miles by the time I got onto the ridge but saw both Steve and Kev who were both running well at this stage. I saw them both twice and each time I was reminded of the fact that I was completing this challenge with these guys and this spurred me on to the last lap.
With the suuport stations that Jamie (from the Trussell Trust) had set up with Carol, Jacks, and Nicky's family, the Marathon run was one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life. This coupled with the fact that all four of us had raised a massive amount of money and publicity for the Trust, led me up the last hill and on to the Fordingbridge road for the last time.
The sense of achievement and pride that flowed through as I crossed the line with Nicky, hand in hand, which I felt was symbollic of the support that she had provided all week, was incredible and a feeling that I won't forget.
It was an honour to do a challenge of that scale with these guys and will lead me into a winter's triathlon training with many smiles and memories!
Tim
How Did "THAT" Happen? by "The Accidental Iron(Wo)Man"
Well the story has been told, along with all the emotional stuff, so eloquently and entertainingly by Richard therefore I will keep this short and sweet. Also, I do not want to detract from this amazing 7 in 7 challenge – it was never meant to include me doing the Forestman! I was just lucky enough to have my offers of support accepted... a bit of running, managing split transitions, first aid, bike spares, flasks of tea (!) ... you know, the usual stuff.
Then half way through the week, after having done a bit of running and cycling, someone (Richard!) put a little seed in my brain! “You could do the whole lot on Sunday, you know!”
Tim actually has a whole army of people in Downton that were willing and did support him during the week – testimony to his positive and delightful personality. Tim has been manager at our local leisure centre, here in Downton, for a few years now and has continued the fabulous work started there by Richard, Jo and Paul Etheridge; they hauled the centre out of closure some 10 plus years ago. The place has a buzz about it; a positive happy vibe. It provides our community with, what I consider to be, a vital service to both young and old: serious and recreational users. For this I will always be extremely grateful... so how could I not support?
It was an absolute joy to see these guys “bond” over the 7 in 7 week; their respect for each other shone through and grew with their continuing endeavours. And it was such a genuinely hard challenge, as anyone who has participated in Race New Forest events will know.
I did astound myself (and a few others!) by pulling that iron distance bike ride out of the bag – not my forte – knew the swim would be ok and knew that the run would feel like being at home. After all, I know the Forest so well and never get lost... almost never!!!
My longest ride before Sunday was 56 miles, and longest tri completed was Olympic distance. I have to add, at this point, that Jacks Howe (Team Feat) and Phil Meredith who also accompanied us, were far more support on the bike for Tim than I could have ever been – wow, they are good!
Once running, I did indeed feel at home and yes, enjoyed the ride too.
So get on the Just Giving site and give to these men for the Trussell Trust (any takers for the South African trunks??!), the achievements were all astonishing and worth every pound of sponsorship.
As a footnote, I said to Joanne that if she receives an entry for Forestman 2012 from me, she is to assume that I have had one too many glasses of wine!! I have admiration by the shed loads for you folks that take part and when I am marshalling next year I will cheer you on with such heartfelt empathy.
Thanks for having me along guys, it was a wonderful week that I’ll never forget and my respect for you all is immense. But especially thanks to Tim for your unbending kindness and encouragement.
Amazing what can be done with the right motivational talking to from the right person! Tim... you must be one hell of a good personal trainer!
Nicky
Then half way through the week, after having done a bit of running and cycling, someone (Richard!) put a little seed in my brain! “You could do the whole lot on Sunday, you know!”
Tim actually has a whole army of people in Downton that were willing and did support him during the week – testimony to his positive and delightful personality. Tim has been manager at our local leisure centre, here in Downton, for a few years now and has continued the fabulous work started there by Richard, Jo and Paul Etheridge; they hauled the centre out of closure some 10 plus years ago. The place has a buzz about it; a positive happy vibe. It provides our community with, what I consider to be, a vital service to both young and old: serious and recreational users. For this I will always be extremely grateful... so how could I not support?
It was an absolute joy to see these guys “bond” over the 7 in 7 week; their respect for each other shone through and grew with their continuing endeavours. And it was such a genuinely hard challenge, as anyone who has participated in Race New Forest events will know.
I did astound myself (and a few others!) by pulling that iron distance bike ride out of the bag – not my forte – knew the swim would be ok and knew that the run would feel like being at home. After all, I know the Forest so well and never get lost... almost never!!!
My longest ride before Sunday was 56 miles, and longest tri completed was Olympic distance. I have to add, at this point, that Jacks Howe (Team Feat) and Phil Meredith who also accompanied us, were far more support on the bike for Tim than I could have ever been – wow, they are good!
Once running, I did indeed feel at home and yes, enjoyed the ride too.
So get on the Just Giving site and give to these men for the Trussell Trust (any takers for the South African trunks??!), the achievements were all astonishing and worth every pound of sponsorship.
As a footnote, I said to Joanne that if she receives an entry for Forestman 2012 from me, she is to assume that I have had one too many glasses of wine!! I have admiration by the shed loads for you folks that take part and when I am marshalling next year I will cheer you on with such heartfelt empathy.
Thanks for having me along guys, it was a wonderful week that I’ll never forget and my respect for you all is immense. But especially thanks to Tim for your unbending kindness and encouragement.
Amazing what can be done with the right motivational talking to from the right person! Tim... you must be one hell of a good personal trainer!
Nicky
Steve's bit!!
Thoughts and reflections of my 7 in 7 week (or more accurately 9 in 9!!)
I’ll explain the 9 in 9 bit first.
In a nutshell, I found out about a week before we were due to kick off that I couldn’t get the Monday or Tuesday off work to do the Boskman and the New Forest Middle and on top of that I had to go back to work on Thursday and Friday after doing the OLT and the New Forest Standard Tri. In fact Wednesday was the only mid-week day I could get off. That was not a nice experience for me after an awful amount of preparation for this challenge. So a quick rethink was in order. After speaking with Richard we agreed that I would do the first 2 Tri’s on Sat and Sunday, and then pick up the rest of the week with the rest of the team from Wednesday onwards.
That was OK, but I didn’t feel comfortable ‘having 2 days off’ when the challenge was supposed to be 7 Triathlons in 7 days. So Monday evening after work I did the Salisbury Tri course, and Tuesday I did a 3-mile/10-mile/3-mile duathlon.
That made me feel a whole lot better!!!!!!!!!!!
It wasn’t until Wednesday that I really felt like I was a member of the group when all 4 of us met up together to start the Swashbuckler, and after a good solid bike I ran the whole distance since it was flat.
Thursday and Friday were again good solid days spoilt only by having to shoot off to work as soon as I had finished each one.
On Saturday I decided to push the pace more on the course, having had enough of the measured approach and just wanting to stretch my legs a bit. That did feel good. Then after meeting up with everyone to talk though the Forestman day it was home to get everything ready and rest.
After a long week I felt unnervingly good on the morning of the Forestman, champing at the bit to get going as it's such a long day, and with no expectations for any ‘time’ but just wanting to finish.
‘That’ swim with Richard was good, despite having a major coughing fit for almost the entire second lap with what felt like a bit of weed stuck across and in my mouth (causing me to nearly puke up all over Richard!!!!) 57 mins was not bad. I did muck about with the pace a bit, but no sooner had I gained half a meter, Richard was back up next to me (and his hand is mashed up from a bad fall a few weeks ago, amazing)
Then it was on to the bike after a fairly slick transition. Nothing much to report on the bike really, felt strong all the way round. I had two ‘minders’ to keep my pace steady (averaged 19.7 mph for the 112 mile).
And finally, on to the run. Normally my nemesis in any Triathlon, but after this week, and the weeks leading up to the 7 in 7, something had changed, having felt on every day like I was using someone else’s legs for the run.
The first 10 miles or so I felt pretty good but things did decline from there onwards. I still managed a 4:35 ish run. My overall time for the Forestman was 11:19. A time I will always feel incredibly proud of, especially after a week of Triathlons leading up to it.
A few statistics by my calculations and timings
Swim total 8.25 miles @ average pace of 25 mins/mile
Bike total 362 miles @ average pace of 18.8 mph
Run total 86.4 miles @ average pace of 10 min/mile
All include the transitions, quite a few of which were a tad leisurely
Total time 37 hours 39 mins
Finally a few thankyou’s.
I’ll explain the 9 in 9 bit first.
In a nutshell, I found out about a week before we were due to kick off that I couldn’t get the Monday or Tuesday off work to do the Boskman and the New Forest Middle and on top of that I had to go back to work on Thursday and Friday after doing the OLT and the New Forest Standard Tri. In fact Wednesday was the only mid-week day I could get off. That was not a nice experience for me after an awful amount of preparation for this challenge. So a quick rethink was in order. After speaking with Richard we agreed that I would do the first 2 Tri’s on Sat and Sunday, and then pick up the rest of the week with the rest of the team from Wednesday onwards.
That was OK, but I didn’t feel comfortable ‘having 2 days off’ when the challenge was supposed to be 7 Triathlons in 7 days. So Monday evening after work I did the Salisbury Tri course, and Tuesday I did a 3-mile/10-mile/3-mile duathlon.
That made me feel a whole lot better!!!!!!!!!!!
It wasn’t until Wednesday that I really felt like I was a member of the group when all 4 of us met up together to start the Swashbuckler, and after a good solid bike I ran the whole distance since it was flat.
Thursday and Friday were again good solid days spoilt only by having to shoot off to work as soon as I had finished each one.
On Saturday I decided to push the pace more on the course, having had enough of the measured approach and just wanting to stretch my legs a bit. That did feel good. Then after meeting up with everyone to talk though the Forestman day it was home to get everything ready and rest.
After a long week I felt unnervingly good on the morning of the Forestman, champing at the bit to get going as it's such a long day, and with no expectations for any ‘time’ but just wanting to finish.
‘That’ swim with Richard was good, despite having a major coughing fit for almost the entire second lap with what felt like a bit of weed stuck across and in my mouth (causing me to nearly puke up all over Richard!!!!) 57 mins was not bad. I did muck about with the pace a bit, but no sooner had I gained half a meter, Richard was back up next to me (and his hand is mashed up from a bad fall a few weeks ago, amazing)
Then it was on to the bike after a fairly slick transition. Nothing much to report on the bike really, felt strong all the way round. I had two ‘minders’ to keep my pace steady (averaged 19.7 mph for the 112 mile).
And finally, on to the run. Normally my nemesis in any Triathlon, but after this week, and the weeks leading up to the 7 in 7, something had changed, having felt on every day like I was using someone else’s legs for the run.
The first 10 miles or so I felt pretty good but things did decline from there onwards. I still managed a 4:35 ish run. My overall time for the Forestman was 11:19. A time I will always feel incredibly proud of, especially after a week of Triathlons leading up to it.
A few statistics by my calculations and timings
Swim total 8.25 miles @ average pace of 25 mins/mile
Bike total 362 miles @ average pace of 18.8 mph
Run total 86.4 miles @ average pace of 10 min/mile
All include the transitions, quite a few of which were a tad leisurely
Total time 37 hours 39 mins
Finally a few thankyou’s.
- Tony Derbyshire – Top Nutritionist expert
- Paul Earley – Boskman bike domestique
- Sam Pociecha – New Forest Half swim buddy and bike domestique
- Chris Newton and Anthony Edwards - My two training buddies on bike rides, who have bullied me round countless rides to bring my bike riding up to where it is now.
- Chris and Anthony also for accompanying me on the Forestman ride.
Richard Iles for letting me take part. Thanks mate!!!
And last but by no means least – my wife Jo, without whom I couldn’t have even started this challenge.
She has shown unwavering confidence in me “and my stupidity”!!!!!!! What? Not only throughout the week but leading up to it as well. Has supported me every day of the challenge, whilst still doing her own job (on the OLT run whilst riding next to me as I ran, she was on her mobile phone fending off her boss’s enquiries as to her whereabouts, and also conducting meetings)
Fed me all the right food, massaged my legs every evening.
Shouted at all four of us whilst "goose stepping" around the lake car park as we were preparing to start the swims, telling us she had a job to get to so we had to get a move on and stop faffing about.
Sacrificed her own training in the process (she’s a top triathlete in her own right, regularly qualifies for the GB squad as an age grouper and nearly always wins her age group in any race she enters, so those of you who compete at that level will appreciate how difficult that was for her)
And looked after our three kids.
And finally thanks to every one who has sponsored and /or supported us through this epic week
So the first two Tri’s were pretty slow and steady with some extreeeeeeeemly long transitions, and I had made the decision to walk up any hills instead of running up since it was going to be a long week. (Amazingly for me I felt so good on those first two runs I had to ‘make’ myself walk up and hills, resisting the urge to keep running)!!!!!!!!!!
Kev's "take" on the week!!
First of all I'd like to say that the 7 Tri's in 7 days was like diving into a swimming pool with the aim of touching the bottom but not knowing the depth. However, taking part with three other slightly mad inquisitive and determined characters made it all the more interesting as to how far I could push my body.
Alongside this, was the fact I was raising money in my eyes ,for a very worthwhile charity."The Trussell Trust"which assisted with amongst other things local issues.
As Richard had indicated throughout the week it was a steep learning curve, with highs and lows, mine being the Swashbuckler half Ironman on Tuesday when without my "elastic band" running in front of me (Andy Brockway) I probably would have struggled to finish. Alongside Andy, help from Austin, Ivan, Wayne, Nicky , Scott, Shirley and Matt was invaluable.
To my times:
Day 1:- 7hrs 12mins
Day 2:- 5hrs 59mins
Day 3:- 5hrs 21mins
Day 4:- 3hrs 21mins
Day 5:- 2hrs 27mins
Day 6:- 1hr 27mins
"FORESTMAN ":- 11hrs 50mins (a PB.)
Total weeks time 38hours 37mins.
Who said tapering was essential for peak performance!!
Anyway its the day after and my routine has gone,back to housework,walking jazz the labrador and playing basketball with Jordan.Without my family and friends none of this would be possible .
Finally thanks to everyone who sponsored me
Kev
Alongside this, was the fact I was raising money in my eyes ,for a very worthwhile charity."The Trussell Trust"which assisted with amongst other things local issues.
As Richard had indicated throughout the week it was a steep learning curve, with highs and lows, mine being the Swashbuckler half Ironman on Tuesday when without my "elastic band" running in front of me (Andy Brockway) I probably would have struggled to finish. Alongside Andy, help from Austin, Ivan, Wayne, Nicky , Scott, Shirley and Matt was invaluable.
To my times:
Day 1:- 7hrs 12mins
Day 2:- 5hrs 59mins
Day 3:- 5hrs 21mins
Day 4:- 3hrs 21mins
Day 5:- 2hrs 27mins
Day 6:- 1hr 27mins
"FORESTMAN ":- 11hrs 50mins (a PB.)
Total weeks time 38hours 37mins.
Who said tapering was essential for peak performance!!
Anyway its the day after and my routine has gone,back to housework,walking jazz the labrador and playing basketball with Jordan.Without my family and friends none of this would be possible .
Finally thanks to everyone who sponsored me
Kev
Richard's "thank-you's"
If you've followed this BLOG it will be no surprise when I say that I've had the best "Tri Week" of my life.
Been lucky enough to race Ironman in Kona, stand on the podium in Clearwater and win a few big races here and there: (hell, I even raced "pro" at Wimbleball at the age of 49!) but I've never, ever enjoyed a day like our ForestMan day.
A cracking way to bow out with great memories:
Marjorie and John
Jax and Wayne
James and Emma
Doug and Nicole
Neil
Andy
Thanks to everyone who came to the finish at Sandy Balls on F'Man day
And finally to Joanne:-
Been lucky enough to race Ironman in Kona, stand on the podium in Clearwater and win a few big races here and there: (hell, I even raced "pro" at Wimbleball at the age of 49!) but I've never, ever enjoyed a day like our ForestMan day.
A cracking way to bow out with great memories:
- First day "BoskMan" and running better than I ever have.......Joanne saying "it's too fast", "I know", "butwhat the heck, you just don't get days like this too often!"
- Blissford Hill!!!!!!!!
- Swimming up the Beaulieu River and later that cracking run up through Bucklers.
- Up the sandy bank on the old Standard run route
- ForestMan swim (and doing three continuous laps without stopping to do breaststroke!!!)
- Not caring about the time but knowing it's respectable
- Watching four great athletes achieving amazing things which made me proud to have shared the week with them; thanks, Tim, Steve Kev and Nicky!!!! Stars every one.
Marjorie and John
Jax and Wayne
James and Emma
Doug and Nicole
Neil
Andy
Thanks to everyone who came to the finish at Sandy Balls on F'Man day
- To Nicky, Greg (and Alice) for understanding my "personalised" rehydration protocol!!! of an evening. No wonder I can't find a beer sponsor, eh??
- To Sharon for sorting out my back on Monday.
- To Del and Jen at Sandy Balls for your tremendous hospitality. Reckon that's what got me round.
- To Bill and Alex at Primera for all your support since what seems like forever.........and actually is almost that long!
- To Mike at 2 X U, who kept me afloat with a couple of great wetties.
- Mike and Emmie at InfiniT............rocket fuel!!! Just the best.
- To my Mum and Dad :- for their absolute belief in my abilities.........always!!
And finally to Joanne:-
- for lending me her Kestrel (which is her pride and joy)
- for putting up with my obsessive compulsive behaviour:- I will admit that lining up the drinks bottles (in order) in the fridge was, indeed, a "bit strange" even by my standards.
- for making sure everything was where it should be, when it needed to be!! (Calfgurds excepted, of course!!)
- for all those bike drink stations and riding round on the run courses
- for not giving me any time checks
- for being there
Trust Your Cape!!
Since we finished I've been asked many times how we managed to churn out performances day after day which came close to (and in instances improved on) our PB's.
The real answer is that neither I, nor the other guys (nor Joanne or anyone else who was part of the week) can really account for it but herewith (good word!) some thoughts.
Some musings.
"Soundness"
Avoiding injury during the week was crucial but I wouldn't have put much money on my ability to run 86 miles in a week at 7 min pace average(ish) without my achilles (plural) telling me to stop having a laugh!! Steve has dodgy knees and Kev's calf/hamstring regularly causes him problems. Tim's too young to have developed these chronic conditions ....yet!!
Ironic, therefore, that Tim's knee was the biggest worry of the week.
Clues? Steve, for one, was considerably lighter than at previous Iron races: do to a lack of swimming/gym even I was a couple of kilos down on normal race weight.........less stress and strain??
Preparation
I did all my cycling in the big chainring during training,often at low cadence having figured that strength would considerably outweigh speed over the week. This followed on from a reasonable winter of weight training based on compound exercises and core stability. By the end of Jan, after which training became less consistent, I had been leg pressing up to 400kg for 6-8 rep sets. This prep will certainly have helped me stay "sound". In my experience veterans need to spend a far greater proportion of their training working against heavy resistance of one sort or another to sustain power. Time and issues meant that I spent less time on the turbo this year...........I'd long suspected that my tough turbo sessions were a factor in my achiles problems: may have been right.
Pacing?
Well I reckon we were at about 80% - 90% of potential all week and feeling stronger by ForestMan day. So not pushing that final extra bit must have had something to do with it.
Lack of fear?
Freed from the competitive environment of a "race" you are able to manage your day "absolutely". No "pre-race" to speak of: no hurly burly in the swim: no-one whizzing past on the bike so no temptation to chase. Your own pace throughout. Big savings here both physically and, I believe, mentally.
Fun
Big smiles every day, well almost. But on the day one or other of us may have been "flat" there were three mates alongside to lighten things up.
Momentum!!
A small group wanting success for each other every day. A couple of days go well with no noticeable physical deterioration and "pow!", suddenly everyone begins to believe that they "can" !!
Belief!!!
Once we got started it actually never occurred to us that we "couldn't" do it!! .........so we did!!
THE CAPE by Guy Clarke
Eight years old with flour sack cape
Tied all around his neck.
He climbed up on the garage
He's figurin’ what the heck .
Screwed his courage up so tight
That the whole thing come unwound.
He got a runnin’ start and bless his heart
He headed for the ground
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape
All grown up with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his dreams.
He’s full of piss and vinegar
He’s bustin’ at the seams.
He licked his finger, checked the wind
It’s gonna be do or die.
See, he wasn’t scared of nothin’, boy
'Cos was pretty sure he could fly
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith.
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape.
Now he's old and grey with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his head.
He’s still jumpin’ off the garage
And will be till he’s dead.
All these years the people said
He’s actin’ like a kid
He did not know he could not fly
..............So he did !!!
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith:
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape
The real answer is that neither I, nor the other guys (nor Joanne or anyone else who was part of the week) can really account for it but herewith (good word!) some thoughts.
Some musings.
"Soundness"
Avoiding injury during the week was crucial but I wouldn't have put much money on my ability to run 86 miles in a week at 7 min pace average(ish) without my achilles (plural) telling me to stop having a laugh!! Steve has dodgy knees and Kev's calf/hamstring regularly causes him problems. Tim's too young to have developed these chronic conditions ....yet!!
Ironic, therefore, that Tim's knee was the biggest worry of the week.
Clues? Steve, for one, was considerably lighter than at previous Iron races: do to a lack of swimming/gym even I was a couple of kilos down on normal race weight.........less stress and strain??
Preparation
I did all my cycling in the big chainring during training,often at low cadence having figured that strength would considerably outweigh speed over the week. This followed on from a reasonable winter of weight training based on compound exercises and core stability. By the end of Jan, after which training became less consistent, I had been leg pressing up to 400kg for 6-8 rep sets. This prep will certainly have helped me stay "sound". In my experience veterans need to spend a far greater proportion of their training working against heavy resistance of one sort or another to sustain power. Time and issues meant that I spent less time on the turbo this year...........I'd long suspected that my tough turbo sessions were a factor in my achiles problems: may have been right.
Pacing?
Well I reckon we were at about 80% - 90% of potential all week and feeling stronger by ForestMan day. So not pushing that final extra bit must have had something to do with it.
Lack of fear?
Freed from the competitive environment of a "race" you are able to manage your day "absolutely". No "pre-race" to speak of: no hurly burly in the swim: no-one whizzing past on the bike so no temptation to chase. Your own pace throughout. Big savings here both physically and, I believe, mentally.
Fun
Big smiles every day, well almost. But on the day one or other of us may have been "flat" there were three mates alongside to lighten things up.
Momentum!!
A small group wanting success for each other every day. A couple of days go well with no noticeable physical deterioration and "pow!", suddenly everyone begins to believe that they "can" !!
Belief!!!
Once we got started it actually never occurred to us that we "couldn't" do it!! .........so we did!!
THE CAPE by Guy Clarke
Eight years old with flour sack cape
Tied all around his neck.
He climbed up on the garage
He's figurin’ what the heck .
Screwed his courage up so tight
That the whole thing come unwound.
He got a runnin’ start and bless his heart
He headed for the ground
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape
All grown up with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his dreams.
He’s full of piss and vinegar
He’s bustin’ at the seams.
He licked his finger, checked the wind
It’s gonna be do or die.
See, he wasn’t scared of nothin’, boy
'Cos was pretty sure he could fly
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith.
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape.
Now he's old and grey with a flour sack cape
Tied all around his head.
He’s still jumpin’ off the garage
And will be till he’s dead.
All these years the people said
He’s actin’ like a kid
He did not know he could not fly
..............So he did !!!
Chorus
He’s one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith:
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape
Tuesday 16 August 2011
Richard's times through the week
Richard's daily times:-
BoskMan 5:53:21
Sept Middle 4:58:30
SwashBuckler 4:20:33
OneLastTri 2:49:22
Standard 1:56:25
Sprint 1:18:04
ForestMan 10:04:42
TOTAL 31:21:16
Sweepstake winner: Mr Dave Woodgate:- estimate 32hrs 32mins
Avg pace: approx:-
Swim:- 25mins 20secs / mile
Bike:- 22.2mph
Run:- 7mins 15secs / mile
BoskMan 5:53:21
Sept Middle 4:58:30
SwashBuckler 4:20:33
OneLastTri 2:49:22
Standard 1:56:25
Sprint 1:18:04
ForestMan 10:04:42
TOTAL 31:21:16
Sweepstake winner: Mr Dave Woodgate:- estimate 32hrs 32mins
Avg pace: approx:-
Swim:- 25mins 20secs / mile
Bike:- 22.2mph
Run:- 7mins 15secs / mile
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