Karen writes: Ironman 2014...the hard work starts

It got pointed out to me that the blog has been very quiet in the last few weeks. Considering Ironman is in eight weeks time there has actually been some work going on, I just haven't been collected enough to think about writing about it. After the Rotorua half Ironman I spent a week doing very little, just a spin class and a fairly short run, my version of recovery. I was in truth feeling pretty disillusioned, I'd had such a bad day at Rotorua, my confidence was down, and it was taking me an unusual amount of time to get back my enthusiasm back.  I was hopeful that I would feel more inspired over Christmas when it was time to go up north with the whanau and I could have a play in my favourite mountains.  I've written about how I love to escape to the Whangarei Heads whenever I can, but especially over that festive season when trips up Mt Manaia become my daily ritual. Then once I am up for more of a challenge I do the 4 hour hike from Bream Head to Urquharts bay followed by a 50 minute run back to my parents place. Every year I suffer a crisis of confidence (can I do it?), every year the weather keeps me guessing, but then I'm dropped off at Ocean beach, I climb that long steep hill to the start of the track and whatever the conditions I love it. This year the weather cleared and apart from starting out a bit tired all was good.  I found that the mad stair builder had been at work, in the middle of the wild bush in a steep rocky gully a set (or sets) of wooden stairs would suddenly appear. I was expecting this to a certain extent having seen the fashion to formalise bush tracks in such a way emerging over time, but it does change the experience. For example, quite apart from the visual impact of all of these unnatural shapes lurking in natural bush, I find that going up the stairs I'm so busy getting my footing right that I pay less attention to what is going on around me. On the downhill getting down low and sliding on my seat is no longer an option, a bit scary on a steep slope. I got back to my parents place after 5 enjoyable hours, but aware that I was slower and less energised than last year.

Got home on the Monday after Christmas, and with a small degree of panic realised that it really was time to get tough and start training proper, so it was back into thinking about how to fit the swim, ride, run into the limited hours I have available.  The weekly big bikeride is the toughest, it takes so much preparation of equipment and assembling of food etc, plus 5 to 7 hours is needed on the actual road. Always I am looking for something to make the experience easier, and this time I had splashed out on a flash new Selle Italia seat at the half price sale at Avanti Plus.  I'd come to the conclusion that the extra few grams for a slightly more padded seat makes not an iota of difference, especially since I am some 6kg heavier than when I did Ironman last time myself. I looked at the label on my flash new seat and it said 236 grams.  It's a tiny bit thicker and longer, and when you poke it while there is a little bit of give (as opposed to hard as a board) it's still pretty tiny and hardly a cushion. Out of curiosity I brought my old seat inside and weighed it on the scales, 200 grams.  The difference in weight between the seats is that of a small packet of raisins so yep, comfort wins out on this occasion. Next I found that one of my shoe cleats was ruined, must have been from that bit of walking uphill at Rotorua. Fortunately I tend to only wreck the right one each time but I replace the pair so I put an old one on which will last until I can get another new set, must remember to organise that, along with a bike service.  Then I saw that the bike had some chips in the paint, out with the white nail-polish, hopefully whatever high-tech alloy it is made of isn't corroding away underneath. Finally I dug out the fancy aero-bar drink bottle which is good for the long rides, it had been sitting in a bucket since February last year, fortunately a bit of brushing and a trip through the dishwasher got rid of the green stuff.  At last, no more excuses, on the day after New Years I got on the road for my first long ride of the year.

It was a glorious morning as I headed off round the coast. The bike creaked and groaned, it didn't enjoy some of the gears I asked it to be in, sometimes it changed gear by itself, never a good sign. What else can I say, the ride was hot, it was long, it was scary (boat trailers cutting too close mainly) and after the first couple of hours of admiring our beautiful countryside, the experience was interminably BORING. Exactly as I remembered it from last year, and the year before, and... I did get to ride alongside and talk to one woman at Clevedon, she came out of a road which I know from experience is very steep, she looked fresh and enthusiastic and told me she had done the Taupo half Ironman and was getting ready for the Auckland 70.3. She was finishing, I had 30km to do, how come she looked like she could go on forever and I was at the point of counting obsessively forwards and backwards to keep my legs turning over? Finally...109 slow km, 5 hours, 1 x peakfuel chocolate and raisin bar (new favourite), 1 x milk drink, 1 packet raisins, 2 bananas, miscellaneous gels and sports beans later and I straggled up the driveway at home and didn't even contemplate going for the planned half hour run. I realised that I hadn't thought about my new seat once, that at least was a success.

So onward to Ironman. This weeks programme:

Monday - 45 minute spin at Te Puru plus strength work
Tuesday - 50 min swim and 70 minute run
Wednesday - OFF
Thursday - 70 min run and 45 minute spin
Friday - 50 min swim
Saturday - 115km bike-ride and 30 minute run (brick)
Sunday - 24km run