Upcoming Events and Training News
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- My Dublin marathon experience
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We left our hotel at 7am,felt ok didnt sleep very well,had a light breakfast and made our way to start area. It was a beautiful autumn morning ,it felt good to be alive and well. It was just over an hour to start time, you could get the sence of excitement and the smell of deep heat.
It was time to get changed for battle ahead, I done my warm up routine, kissed my wife Maggie and son Jake, they both wished me good luck, Maggie had tears in her eyes. I looked at my watch 2 mins to start. I felt good,then we were off.....
The miles came and went, I was passing a lot of people at the early stages just to get through the field, I was thinking was I pushing myself to hard, I wanted to get the miles behind me. Everyone has their own pace, no matter what advice you get you still want to push yourself to the max,. I remember running around Phoenix Park..where else would you want to be, on this Autumn Day, my friend mick came to mind, I had asked him once to do a marathon with me when he got better, but alas it was not to be, the people you love and respect are with you always, if they could show themselves they would, they are very close, 'did you ever look over your shoulder and feel someone is there' as our Lord said 'The Kingdom of God is very close'.
Micks spirit is with all who knew him. 10 miles came I felt good, 13 miles came and I looked at my watch 96 minutes, I was 'Bombing'to use a phrase from Bernard...maybe I had gone to fast, to soon, getting doubts but still ok.. 15 miles came the pace had dropped but still ok, 18 miles came and didnt feel to good, I knew I was in trouble,.(my training had gone ok the max I has done was 20 miles ,I should have done the 22 miles at least). At 19 miles I had to stop I remember saying "fuck it" this is punishment,what was I at,I could be home on this Bank holiday Monday having a fry-up, I had to get out of this negative mood, I took some sports beans and cycle shot's, and some water and started of again. I got to 21 miles, the wheels were starting to fall off,felt bad,depressed I wanted to crawl away and lie down, all my early work was disapearing fast, my mind and body were turning against me. I had to keep going, walk run or crawl,I was going to get that medal no matter what.
I reached 23 miles, I stopped again, I walked for a few minutes, I thought if I had a pee I might feel better, my bladder was full, I just went along a wall, loads of people around, I was in such discomfort I did'nt care, 'marathons are a real test of character, it shows the person you are..their is no hiding place.
I wanted to finish strong ,now I just wanted to finish....The people were chearing,urging everyone, to keep going, they were fantastic.This woman came over to me, and gave me jelly babies, she could see I was in trouble...She put her hand on my shoulder, and said "dont give up keep going you are nearly there". Remember earlier, what I said ..people are with you always....I looked at her and thanked her, Its amazing what a few words of encouragment can do.
I started on my way again,I ran, I walked ,I stumbled, I just wanted it all to end. My emotions were running high, I couldnt control them, I looked at my watch 3 hrs.15 min, I couldnt think had I passed 24 miles, what a relief 25 miles, couldnt get enough water, I had 3 bottles, I kept gulping. I seen a sign 800 mts to finish,looked at my watch 3.30 I thought to myself I want to beat 3-40.
I started to pick up some sort of pace, I seen the finish line, my emotions were all over the place.The people who have gone to their resting place, were in my thoughts my mother, my brother Tom, and Martin Joseph,and Mick, people who encouraged me, I hope I done them proud on this day.
The finish line came and went 3-37, I was shattered, but happy and tearful, because on this day I had given it every ounce of effort I possibly could. I hav'nt cheated ,"not something a certain Thiery Henry "can say. Its important in life to be the best you can be, and above all to have honour.
I got my medal,kissed it,and lay down beside all the other 'gladiatiors'who gave it all in the battle over mind and body....'Our greatest glory is not in never falling,but rising everytime we fall'.
Gerry
Congrats to Deirdre and Michelle on their fantastic achievements.
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- Triathlon Ireland eBulletin – 21/11/09
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Winter may have taken a firm grip across the country and floods may have played havoc with your biking plans this weekend, but the work has been continuing within Triathlon Ireland. The provisional race calendar for 2010 has been published on the website, although changes will continue to be made for several weeks yet. The final calendar will be confirmed around the turn of the year. A number of new events have been included and these will require additional support from TI officials as they prepare for their inaugural event. We extend a welcome to the new races and wish all race organisers success for 2010.
One of the administrative successes of 2009 has been the timely return of paperwork, results and One Day Licence money from the vast majority of events. Our thanks go to all those who assisted. I know it can be a pain at times when you’re queuing to register rather than spending time posing with your new bike in transition, but these ‘Sign On’ sheets are critical for your safety when racing. They help to ensure that insurance regulations are met and allow the Technical Official and Referee to issue a race permit, confident that the organiser has complied with safety guidelines. Your safety when racing is of paramount importance.
There are a tiny number of events who have not played ball and have withheld paperwork or ODL money. These races will not be sanctioned by Triathlon Ireland until they comply with regulations. They will not have approved safety plans or be insured by us and competitors may want to check the level of any alternative cover being offered. Your views on this matter are most welcome.
Membership for 2010 is available through the website, and makes a perfect Christmas present for someone! Who said romance is dead??
The last few weeks have witnessed two very different events being held by TI. The latest Talent ID day was held at the end of October and incorporated re-testing of those juniors who are already on the program. It was great to see a dedicated team of coaches, working under the direction of Chris Jones, put a large group of young athletes through their paces. Following the swim time trial, athletes and parents were given a presentation on the realities of performance sport. No punches were pulled and all present were given an insight to the sacrifices required to reach the pinnacle in sport. The current junior squad members were kitted out in TI gear, presenting a very professional image. We’ll continue to keep tabs on the development of this squad during 2010.
The second event was classroom based; well lecture theatre actually, in UCD as the National Coaching Conference took place. Over sixty members signed on for an enlightening day with some dynamic speakers. First up was Tristan Collins from Performance Impact who talked about developing and managing a coaching team. We’d all like to call upon the best physios, nutritionists, lunch makers, bag carriers etc, but Tristan emphasised the need to identify specific requirements and address them accordingly using available resources. As a coach, control the resources and don’t let them control you.
The middle part of the day gave an insight to the specialist assistance which is available and may be called upon. For the vast majority of us, significant improvements can be made pretty easily. Work on body position in the water and stop trying to beat it up! Lose a few kilos and you’ll go faster on the bike. Exercise consistently and steadily, stay injury free and your running will improve. Add that to a healthier diet with more sleep, knock the booze on the head and hey presto – we’ve all improved. But still, most of us tend to operate at about 60-70% of potential.
Elite athletes have already made these lifestyle changes and show incredible dedication. They may be operating at 95% of potential and find it difficult to squeeze out that extra few percent which can make such a difference. This is when the coach draws upon specialist services such as those provided to Triathlon Ireland by the Sports Institute of Northern Ireland. Presentations were made by Michael Johnson and Declan Gamble, Head of Strength & Conditioning and Physiology respectively. The two guys showed how immensely technical things can get. It was an eye opener, but it has hopefully sparked an interest in those present. Coaching courses will be organised during 2010, but in the meantime, the advice was to get active in coaching and gain experience from those around you.
The last speaker was Darren Smith, the Australian coach of a number of top international triathletes including Lisa Norden and Daniela Ryf. Darren outlined how a coach needs to create a suitable environment for an athlete to prosper and how that environment will differ from one person to the next. This can be witnessed at just about every club training session across the country. It is the coach’s impossible job - to keep all of the people happy, all of the time, while still improving performance. Tough one. On behalf of TI, Chris Jones thanked all the speakers and those in attendance.
Congratulations go to all the Irish athletes who competed in the recent Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Florida. Pride of place goes to Olympian’s Dessie McHenry who ran a 1:33 half marathon to make up a five minute deficit and win his age group. We’ll have at least one more bulletin circulated before Christmas but in the meantime, stay safe on the roads.
Yours in Sport
Conal Heatley
Secretary, Triathlon Ireland
secretary@triathlonireland.com
Tel: 00353 83 374 6607
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- PowerAde Salmon Run in 2010 National Series
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Our PowerAde Salmon Run Triathlon was today selected to be included in the 2010 Triathlon Ireland National Series. This is great news for our Club and reflects again the popularity of our event and the positive feedback received by Triathlon Ireland. The full list of races included in the 2010 National Series Calendar can be seen on the Triathlon Ireland website. As this year I will be forming an organising Committee for our event early in 2010.
Bernard McGuinness
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- Fit 4 Life
- Fit 4 Life continues every Thursday night at Ballina Athletic track from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm. New members always welcome. Fit 4 Life offers participants the opportunity to meet and train with runners/joggers/walkers of similiar ability. Sessions may vary from speed work on the track to a five mile road run. If you require additional information please contact Michele Reynolds 0864180159/Liz Murphy 0872419309.
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- Intensive swim coaching
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An e-mail rec'd for those looking for swim trainingA charaI have booked the experts from swim for tri for an intense swimming coaching workshop for the weekend of November 28th/29th The head coach is a guy called Dan Bullock (regular contributor to swim articles in 220 mag) and he has a sub 16 minute 1500meter to his name. I have attended the worshop in the past and found it excellent. I really need to know who is interested ? Pass the word around to non club members or the swimming club or anyone who wants to come.
The cost is €185 for the Saturday and the Sunday. Look on their website and see the savings compared to the Dublin or uk workshops. They charge £230. I have names from 11 Sligo tri club members. So I am opening it to other clubs that might be interested. I will take the names of the first few people that e mail. I will need full payment ASAP. So can people please forward there cheques or bring cash to swimming session on Friday nights. I need all the money by the 21st of November as the invoice has being raised and has to be paid in advance of them coming. No Payment on the day (Sorry).
The venue is Avena Leisure
Please email if your interested and I will forward my address and payment optionsHere is the blurbThis session is for swimmers of all abilities. There is no minimum or maximum swim ability requirement. From the novice transitioning from breaststroke to freestyle for their first Sprint Tri to IronMen looking to break 50 minutes for the 3.8km swim. These intensive classes are ideal for those needing a major stroke overhaul.These sessions are not yardage based. Emphasis is on performing the drills correctly with plenty of recovery time. We recommend that you take a rest day on the Friday before the workshop so that you are fresh to fully focus on the drills we ask you to perform. The day will be tiring mentally as much as physically.
By the end of the workshop you should feel stronger and more relaxed in the water, leaving with a greater understanding of your stroke and what you need to do to continue improving. Our expert coaches will provide you with ample feedback and drills recommendations to help get your swimming on track for a successful season of swimming and racing.
Please email us (bookings@swimfortri.com) before sending an application form to ensure that there are spaces left on these courses.
Course includes:
- Swim tuition, theory and video review
- Drills Demo DVD handed out on the day of the course
- Drills instruction booklet
- Filming of you transferred to DVD
- Low numbers, excellent teaching ratios
Course structure:
Saturday:
09:30 - 10:00 Welcome, course introduction, and swim theory.
10:00 - 12:00 1st swim session - basic drills to restrict bad habits and introduce correct swim movements. Filming.
12:00 - 13:00 Break/food13:00 - 14:00 Filming review and demonstrations
14:00 - 15:30 2nd swim session - advanced drills for those ready
15:30 - 16:00 Session review.Sunday:
09:30 - 10:00 Arrival and preparation for session
10:00 - 12:00 3rd swim session
12:00 - 13:00 Break/food13:00 - 14:30 4th swim session - advanced drills
14:30 - 15:00 Break
15:00 - 16:00 Filming review, session distribution with personal drills guidelinesWrap up and Goodbyes
Includes:
DVD of you swimming
- Drills demo disc for your future reference
- Follow up access to coaching staff for further questioning
*Please Note :
Price does not include lunch, accommodation or travel
None of our courses / workshops includes kit
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Regards
Colm
