<?xml version="1.0"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Sarah Lovelock - Tri247</title><link>http://www.tri247.com/index.html</link><description>Latest articles submitted by Sarah Lovelock on Tri247</description><item><title><![CDATA[Ironman Wales course preview]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_8624.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Columnist Sarah Lovelock has been getting the preparation in early for this years Ironman Wales, and reports back on a bike course which features, hill, wind, hills...and a few hills! 

Ironman Wales Reconnaissance trip
Prior to this weekend&#039;s Long Course Weekend in Wales  I&#039;d thought I should write up my experience of the Ironman Wales course. Before  I start, three words sum up the bike and run course: hilly and windy. We  arrived in Tenby around midday on  Friday a bit weary from the 6-hour journey from Eastbourne.  If I&#039;m honest Simon was more tired since he was driving and I have a remarkable  ability to fall sleep almost instantly when a passenger. We&#039;d left sunshine in Eastbourne,  but almost immediately after crossing the Severn it was  raining. It was also very windy. The rain did leave us, but the wind was in to  stay for the entire weekend.
We immediately hit the bike course, setting out with the map  and directions from the Ironman Wales website eager to stretch our chair shaped  legs, work out the route and to see what would be in store for us on race day.  The bike is advertised at present as a two lap bike, which one large loop and a  second shorter loop (which repeats the second half on the first loop). The bike  course rolls out from Tenby along the coast road (A4139) before heading in  towards Pembroke. From there a relatively steep climb out of Pembroke then the  climbs and descents become a bit steeper. There&#039;s a short, shaded and twisty  decent &amp;ndash; my least favourite type just after St Petrox then the road carries on  towards Castlemartin. Here we found a road closed sign. We&#039;d done a lot of  map consulting so far, as although the description of the course was detailed  with road names, none of these were signposted in reality, so weren&#039;t 100% sure  we were on the right road. 
The course passes through a military (artillery)  training zone, which happened to be in use hence the road closed sign. We  probably should have made the link sooner, as we had just passed the entrance  to a military base, complete with two large tanks outside, just 100 meters down  the road. A short diversion found us back on the bike course, headed for  Freshwater West. The beach here is stunning; the climb up from there is not  enjoyable however. Be prepared to use your small chain ring and watch out for sand  on the road, especially if windy, as the road is narrow here and passes through  the sand dunes. A short descent down and back up from Angle sees the course  heading back to Pembroke. The road here is rolling and of good surface, so  should be opportunity to make up for some of the slowness on the rest of the  course. A short loop around Pembroke centre (there&#039;s a very short but steep  climb as you make the turn through town, which caught me a bit by surprise  first time around, and saw me uncomfortably grinding my way up the 30m  stretch).
Heading back along the road you come into Pembroke on towards  Lamphey, where there&#039;s a left turn onto a road called the Ridgeway. It&#039;ll come  to no surprise that this is another uphill, and you seem to only just get to  the ridge, with stunning coastal views, before turning off and descending to  Sageston. The lane here is narrow and steep, but has just been resurfaced  properly, so should be a fast descent. We were treated to the view of Carew  Castle, before crossing the river and  heading uphill towards Cresselly and Yerbeston. It&#039;s basically uphill and  downhill from there all the way to Narberth, where there&#039;s a steep downhill,  straight into a steep uphill, which flattens a bit, but seems to go on for what  seems like forever. It was here I started contemplating using my road bike on  race day, as I just wanted to keep shifting gears on the uphill and my legs  were screaming at me for such low cadence climbing. The course then loops out  east to Tavernspike, via Princes Gate (more rolling), a sharp right turn  heading south west towards Ludchurch, then it&#039;s mostly downhill to the coast.  At this point I&#039;d pretty much figured out that any downhill was going to be  matched with an equally steep uphill, and I wasn&#039;t disappointed. The climb out  of Wiseman&#039;s bridge has a 16% sign at the bottom. I was definitely heading  towards the road bike option now. Then guess what the course heads downhill  into Saundersfoot then straight up the other side, on another steep climb, back  towards Tenby. Lap one done. The course then passes through and out of Tenby as  on the first lap, then about 3 miles before Pembroke it turns right at Lamphey,  onto the ridgeway and follows the route taken by lap one. It had taken us five  hours to complete the long loop with a lot of stop/starting and a bit of  getting lost along the way. Over the weekend we rode different sections of the  bike course and I made up my mind to use my Cervelo S2 over my Quintana Roo  Cd0.1. Not being able to shift so frequently on the up hills when on my base  bar, meant I spent a lot of time riding in a lower cadence than I&#039;d have like  to be riding in and I don&#039;t want my legs to be cream crackered for the run.  Simon was fine, he has Di2 on his P4, with shifters on his base bar and tri  bars. And since Santa will not be making an early visit and bringing me Di2 for  my race bike, I&#039;m going to be riding my Cervelo road bike, with USE tribars and  my Hed wheel set. 

My running is coming along, and over the weekend I managed a  few runs on the course. From T2 in Tenby town centre, the 4-lap run course  heads straight out of town along the coast road, which is mainly a rolling  downhill, except for a short hill near the Haven  Caravan Park  and petrol station. The route turns into Penally village, along a road which  runs almost parallel to the coast road, heading back to Tenby, so is a rolling  uphill! Back in Tenby it&#039;s up St John Hill, downhill to the castle, around the  castle, past the life boat station, up Castle Hill - a 10meter stretch almost  vertical, only a slight exaggeration. Then a loop through the town centre,  which if the organisers can get the right atmosphere going should be great fun,  before heading back out of town. The run should be a good course for  spectators. 
Can&#039;t really say too much about the swim, we did don our  wetsuits on Sunday night and head down to the sea. It was bloody cold (good  luck to those doing the long swim on Friday - remember your  neoprene hat and booties!) and choppy. Both of us managed about 100 meters  before getting out, much to the amusement of the car park attendant, he pointed  out to stay clear of &amp;lsquo;The Whiteback&#039;, a sandbank mid-beach which messes with  the tides and catches the unwary, but also took great relish is calling us soft  southerners, but kindly pointed us in the direction of a really good fish and  chip shop, for a treat on our last night.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: ups and downs!]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_8524.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Yet again it seems that I wrote an update a couple of weeks  ago, only to realise it&#039;s actually been a couple of months. After a good winter  of training, everything has gone a bit pear shaped. I&#039;d had a winter injury  free, which was obviously tempting fate. I&#039;d been completing long runs holding  at a very respectable pace and was hoping for a sub 1:30  at the Fleet half marathon at the very least. Obviously that didn&#039;t go to plan  otherwise I would not be sharing this woeful tale. 
I was looking on target  until six miles, when I started have stomach issues. I can only blame my step  mum&#039;s cooking and eating late the night before, for the loo stops. From then  on, my legs and brain were not on the same wavelength. Despite wanting to run  fast, my legs were having none of it. About 10 miles in I started getting ITB  and knee pain, so eased back the pace completely, to be able to recover quickly  and put in a quality week of training afterwards. I finished only just in front  of an Army captain, running in full kit with 20lb pack. From then onwards I  seem to have had niggle after niggle. Maybe I headed back into running too quickly,  maybe not enough stretching or massage, new shoes or maybe even the fact I was  taking an almost illegal amount of painkillers as I&#039;d just had my braces tightened,  but a couple of weeks later I then developed shin pain. So I&#039;ve now had a  couple of weeks off training, free from running as that seems to have done the  trick. Yesterday I managed my first run in three weeks, 20 minutes, so slow I was  almost walking! But with no repercussions. 
So unfortunately I had to pull out of Sunday&#039;s Marshman  Triathlon. I raced and won the Marshman Plus event last year &amp;ndash; as it&#039;s only an  hour away, it seemed like an ideal season opener back in January and a good way  to gauge my fitness, ready for the build to Ironman Wales. Plus, for a local  event it was well organised. My Quintana Roo CD 0.1 did get a punishing today  though with my first open 25 Mile TT for two years. Last year I didn&#039;t do any  time trialling and felt I lacked the bike speed, I considered my strength. So  at least a drop in run volume is allowing me to concentrate on my biking for a  bit. Today wasn&#039;t pretty. I left my power tap unit in the kitchen, so rode  blind and spectacularly blew up in the last couple of miles. Despite this and a  change of course due to road works, rubbish road surface and lots slippery wet  roundabouts from early morning down pours, I came ridiculously close to setting  a new PB for the distance. My coach also thinks it is now warm enough for sea swimming  &amp;ndash; I&#039;ll beg to differ. First sea swim is set for tomorrow night. Personally I&#039;m  hoping that the wind picks up and we have 10 feet of chop. I&#039;m never really a  fan of sea swimming in the murky waters in the UK,  especially not when it&#039;s frigging cold. 
Other things that have been happening &amp;ndash; I&#039;m well into my  first master&#039;s degree module. After a slow start with essay writing I seemed to  have been able to dig out some study skills that were hidden after completing  my undergraduate degree seven years ago. Sometimes I wonder why I even thought doing  a part time master&#039;s alongside full time working (including one hour each way  commute) and Ironman training was sensible. But it&#039;s working out, I just have  to be strict with myself after weekend training and knuckle down to work.  
Probably more importantly, more exciting and I&#039;ll get in trouble for not  putting this at the top... I got engaged!! Simon asked me out of the blue on his  birthday &amp;ndash; no excuses to forget the date! So mostly despite the lows and  stresses over the past couple of months I&#039;ve been walking around with a big  smile on my face and a glittery ring on my finger. No date set yet, likely to  be next summer, but I&#039;ve already been banned by my family from getting married  in Hawaii though. And it&#039;ll come to  no surprise to those that know my fianc&amp;eacute; Simon, from The Tri Store in Eastbourne  that he&#039;s hoping to be able to wear shorts! ]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: getting back to it...]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_8188.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[I&#039;ve been receiving a lot of banter of late about my lack of  blogging, and to be fair it is deserved, since it&#039;s been a while. My last blog  update was at the beginning of November! I had planned a good break from  structured training, after my three Ironman season and it ended up being a bit  longer than planned with repeated colds. I under-estimated how tired and  unmotivated I would be and how difficult it would be to get back into  structured training. The snow and ice helped, as the thought of 3-4 hour  rides on the turbo every week, was not appealing. Simon and I had talked about  doing Ironman South Africa this year. I&#039;m now  so glad we decided to not to enter such an early Ironman. In April last year I  took a promotion at work, to a job I love but involves almost an hour commute  each way. I&#039;m fortunate enough to be able to car-share, but still the  travelling in the dark has been tiring. Roll on the Spring (or at least some  warmer weather), so that the 22-miles each way, can be turned into a training  ride).
Anyway all that lovely time off training, left more time to  do the things you neglect to do when training lots. We got quickly settled into  our new flat. Our old flat (which we moved into in the short term, but that  quickly became five years) was a bit like a student flat. We now have a much more  grown up flat, which is so big we often lose one another and has a gym room  (meant to be spare room!) with treadmill, turbo set up on bike, and small  weights selection.  Simon&#039;s sister also  had a baby, so much baby Max cuddling has been had. Spent time catching up with  friends and family and doing all those other things you neglect or run out of  time to, like drink wine! 
After Christmas and New Year, I finally got back to some  proper training, which by that time, I was ready to do. The focus so far has  been on my swimming and running. I&#039;d like to say both have come on fabulously  and I&#039;m running and swimming so much faster than last year, but at the moment  I&#039;m not. I&#039;m starting to feel fitter and stronger, but we&#039;re trying some new  things in the pool, changing my stroke, which just feels uncomfortable and slow  at the moment. Recovering from hard run sessions is something I struggled with  last year and lacked confidence in my ability to run fast as a result, so that  has been a priority. So far, with more stretching, better warm up and cool  downs, weight training and more core stability work I have been able to do more  running, and have not suffered with sore tight legs and niggly injuries. So  things are moving forwards. It&#039;s still really early as my goal is a late season  Ironman.  The only thing that has got in  the way of training has been work, either having to do a bit at work, or being  very stressed and tired at the end of the day. Both of which obviously impact  on training time and quality. But I&#039;m learning to appreciate this and adjust my  training as required. If work stress if high, then adding a lot of training  stress is likely to make me feel run down and lack energy. It&#039;s funny that  since I accepted this, work stress has felt a lot lower, although there are  still manic days. 
For the past couple of years I have been fortunate to  receive a generous amount of support from DJM Products, the UK distributor  of Zoot Sports. Their ultra range of triathlon training and racing apparel has  been fantastic and the compression clothing is the best I&#039;ve used. However,  I&#039;ve now decided it&#039;s time to end that partnership. I thank Martin Branfoot and  DJM for all their support.
I have now teamed up with Craft for this coming year, which  I am very excited about.  One large box of goodies arrived this week. There&#039;s  nothing like new kit to get you out training on cold and wet winter days!
]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: End of season reflections]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7796.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[I can&#039;t quite believe that Hawaii Ironman was four  weeks ago. After the race we had almost a week to relax and explore. In 2008 we  headed straight to Oahu and felt like we didn&#039;t see much of the rest of the  island. So this time we stayed on the Big Island till Friday. On the way home  we had an eight hour stop-over in San Fransisco, and headed downtown on the first  train of the day, then caught the first tram of the day as the city was waking  and the sun rising, down to the waterfront, for a warming up coffee (going from  high 20&#039;s to very low teens was a shocker! - not shorts and flip flops that&#039;s  for sure), and stroll along the front.
Back home jet lag hit big time. My brain did not return to my body until  midweek and I had a stinking cold, so the week was pretty much written off as  completely unproductive. We then moved flat the following weekend. The moving  out and in was pretty relaxed and uneventful. But having lived in our old flat  for almost five years, their was a lot of cleaning and painting to be done - but  obviously paid off since we got all our deposit back, so we have now rewarded  ourselves and blown it on a new mattress.
Doing three Ironman races in four months has been trying, both physically and mentally and I  have definitely neglected family and friends, so I have been enjoying relaxing  and catching up with them. But now I&#039;m slowly getting back into training -  although hampered by a flare up of my hayfever. Yes I know, wrong time of year  but apparently mould and fungi spores are triggers for it at this time of year.
I sat down with my coach and reflected on the past year and started making  plans and setting goals for the next year. Not to sound dismissive but despite  achieving my goal of qualify and racing in Hawaii, the year overall has been  pretty unlucky for me. I had a number of running injuries, which curtailed the  winter and spring base training. My only running race was done off the back of  a weeks hard cycling, I think my legs were still in Spain! I lacked speed and  confidence in my running ability. Although my swim fitness had improved, my  swimming technique still leaves a lot to be desired. Due to June, August and  October Ironman&#039;s, i missed out on doing cycling time trials, as a result I did  not feel as though I was in as good a bike shape as 2009. My first two  ironman&#039;s in Nice and the UK, i became suffered with GI Issues! on the run,  which was a new experience for me since I&#039;ve often boasted about the resilience  of my stomach. Then after my fall in the T1 of Ironman UK and another minor  injury at work a couple of days before a 100 mile time trail, I had a period of  back and buttock pain, which prevented me from building up to kona as I would  have liked.
Despite the setbacks throughout the year, It ended on a high - a well paced  race in Hawaii, so i can only be happy and excited for next year :-) ]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Kona report: Sarah Lovelock]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7705.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Saturday morning started just before 4am, with  a breakfast of so much bagel with honey that I struggled to eat the last  mouthfuls. With my breakfast washed down with a black coffee, we headed down to  the Pier for body marking and final bike checks. The whole process despite  being crowded with athletes and relatives was completely painless, due to being  so well organised. The rest of the morning (as race mornings do) went fast and  the next thing i know is that the pro&#039;s have started and I&#039;m standing on the  Pier in my Blue Seventy Point Zero 3 XT ready to get into the water.
I got into  a better spot than in 2008, when I ended up getting stuck on the inside of the pier, but  still got completely drowned. (One particular guy completely dunked me, only to  then swim a lot slower, and didn&#039;t come past me on the bike till the 35 mile  point - where&#039;s the Aloha!).
My swim this year wasn&#039;t to bad. it was hectic out to  the turnaround, but then seemed to settle down. And I actually swam in a  straight line, which is an achievement for me as I often think I add 100&#039;s of  meters (okay exaggeration!), to my swim. I still need to work on my swim as I lost almost 12 mins to some of the faster girls in my age group. Work for the winter.
T1 went  smoothly and I was pleased to be on to my new Quintana Roo Cd 0.1.  It was a lovely ride, I rode within myself and kept the pace controlled, to let  my stomach settle, which I may be guilty of not doing in the past. The  ride out to Kawaihae went quickly, there were lots of packs riding past along this stretch.  Before long we were up on the road to Hawi and the wind was blowing a gale. At  one point I was cleanly blown across the road and also lost my race  number from my number belt. I was hoping the descent from Hawi, back  to Kawaihae would be more pleasant with the downhill speed cancelling out the cross winds,  but it was still gusting and their were a few times I actually got off my tri bars  and was looking forward to the headwind, we&#039;d have from Kawaihae back  to Kona.  I felt good the entire bike ride and stuck to my nutrition, hydration and  cooling strategies throughout. On the way back to Kona I got  a passing penalty for not making a clean pass, which pissed me off since the  reason I stopped the pass was to let the draft marshal know that I had lost the  number. So on entering T2 I had a 4 minute penalty to serve.

I started the run conservatively, knowing what happened in Ironman Nice, when I was dehydrated and had heat stroke.  I wanted to finish this race well. I stopped at each aid station to take on  fluids and put ice down the back of my bra and shorts. I had a few bad patches  on the run and can hold my hand up to saying that I walked up  Palani and  also for a short patch out of the Energy Lab as I could feel that I was getting  very hot. There were some fast running age group girls on the run. Coming down Palani into the last mile, was a fantastic feeling. This time I completely took it in and  enjoyed the final 400m&#039;s into the finish chute, and somehow  managed to muster a massive jump as I crossed the finish line. Happy to have  put together a solid race. Happy to have finished in daylight and not holding a  glow stick, this time. Faster next time :-)

There are still lots of things for me to work on. For one I need to be lighter  and leaner to run faster here, to help keep cooler. But for me season is done.  Three Ironman races between June and now and starting a new job has been challenging and I&#039;m  in need of some downtime. Then back to working on my weaknesses over the  winter, ready for next year.
Thanks to The Tri Store for their ongoing support, Quintana Roo for my lovely  bike, the 2011 Cd0.1 and Zoot sports UK/ DJM Products for their ongoing support  with sponsorship. 
Sarah&#039;s splits

  
    Age Group 
    Age Group Position 
    Swim
    T1
    Bike
    T2
    Run
    Total
  
  
    M25-29
    16th
    1:12:45
    0:02:74
    5:34:43
    0:07:21
    3:53:43
    10:51:08
  



]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: Aloha from the Big Island of Hawaii]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7653.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Tri247 columnist Sarah Lovelock is one of the talented British athletes that have made it to the Kona for the 2010 Ironman World Championships. She checks in with her first thoughts, and having breakfast with Craig Alexander....

Well today is our first day on the big island of Hawaii, after a long 27 hours of travel yesterday. Happily through we, bikes  and bags all arrived in one piece. Probably half the people on the plane from  LA to Kona were compression clad Ironmen and Ironwomen.  My plan of sleeping on the first flight and staying awake on the second was  completely reversed as I found myself wide awake pretty much the whole way from London and had a marathon movie watching session instead. I think I managed to annoy  the lady next to me with my incessant giggling throughout the A Team.
After a long wait at the hire car place we crammed three bikes, four large bags, four  carry on bags and four people into the dodge (!) caravan and found our apartment or  condo as the Americana&#039;s call them - which is beautiful - just off Alii drive,  on the seafront. The surf is up at the moment, so waves are crashing up over  the first sea wall, hope it settles down for next weekend.
Today has been a quiet day. A treat of first day of holiday breakfast at Lava  Java (the triathlete&#039;s cafe - Jo Lawn and Craig Alexander sat down at the table next to us,  both looking very race fit. Simon&#039;s pretty much in heaven, being a  complete tri geek), then a stop at the farmers market for fresh fruit and veg. Then followed a  confusing and drawn out trip to Safeway&#039;s and a lovely swim in the sea before  lunch. My Cd 0.1 is now built so going take it out for a short spin in a bit, to  hopefully loosen off our legs from our day of forced inactivity yesterday. I&#039;m  very excited as this will be the first ride with race wheels on :-)
I think that having been here before in 2008, I feel more relaxed knowing what  to expect and how everyone is eyeing each other up. I don&#039;t think I am in the  best shape I could be in having struggled  with injury since Ironman UK. But despite this I am looking forward to racing and pulling off the best  day I can.
]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: my new ride...]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7598.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[With just over two weeks to go, Sarah Lovelock is in the final preparations for Kona, and the Ironman World Championships. On the downside, a niggling injury has impacted her running, but on the upside...she has a new bike!

It&#039;s been three weeks since my last post, mostly due  to the monsters living in our computer only being banished last week, but  mostly I&#039;ve  been holding out to be able to show a picture of my new bike. 

My lovely  Quintana Roo Cd0.1 frame arrived three weeks ago, but I have been waiting  (in)patiently for the brakes to arrive, which they finally did last Monday. I  love riding my Lucero and was definitely sad to be parted from it, but this  bike is fantastic. I&#039;m not a bike geek, so will not be using any mumbo gumbo to  describe it, but it feels fast. It is really responsive, it goes uphill well  and descends well, feeling really stiff, which I am kindly informed by Simon  that it&#039;s because of the size of the bottom bracket! My second ride today was  in the rain and wind (so it now needs a clean :-( !!) I rode 110 miles, mostly  on the tri bars and was so comfy and fast. As a bonus when stopped at traffic  lights, a number of people commented how good it looked. I &#039;m looking forward  to riding it with race wheels on now - Roll on Hawaii.
  
  My preparations for Hawaii have not been going to plan, but are hopefully  getting back on track. The 100-mile Time Trial was a complete disaster. It was  a miserably wet and cold day and at about 30 miles in my left glut and back  tightened up and steadily got worse. I pushed on until the 50-mile mark, when I  just decided to ride steady, rather than race. By that point I was pretty much  only pedalling with my right leg. I still don&#039;t know what triggered it,  possibly the fall I took in T1 at Ironman UK, combined with complete rest then  building back up training or the slight knock/bruise on my glut which I gave  myself by falling into a plinth at work, which at the time felt minor. For  whatever reason my glut medius and piriformis muscles have been causing me a  lot of pain and I&#039;ve not be able to run since. At the beginning of this week I  was completely feed up, as it hadn&#039;t really got any better. But I now feel a  corner has been turned. On Thursday I asked a friend and physio  lecture/practitioner to take a look. Unable to find anything major only some  tightness, tenderness and scar tissue in piriformis and glut medius, and a  slight weakness in my left hip internal rotators and glut/hamstring  combination, he advised a go for a run, (stopping if the pain increased). So  Friday morning, for the first time in three weeks I headed out for a proper run. I  could feel tightness in my left glut but to my surprise the pain didn&#039;t get any  worse. Nor did it get any worse throughout the day. If anything it got better.  It was only a 30 min run yesterday and 10 minutes off a long bike today, but  I definitely feel a corner has been turned. Good job since Kona is less than four weeks  away.
  
  Since my last post I have been at another ironman triathlon, but this time in a  supporting capacity. Simon raced the Big Woody Triathlon, on the 28th August. A  last minute swim  venue change, due to blue/green algae meant the swim was held in an old quarry,  which was spectacular at sun rise, but also gave the athletes a steep and  stoney run up to transition. The swim was on the short side, but the athletes  then faced a 109-mile hilly bike ride, before a 4-lap trail run. Simon looked  strong and comfortable throughout the day. I performed my race day duties of  cheering and handing up bottles, with precision. I even managed to get a couple  of sneaky  bike rides in around these duties. The only time I started to worry that  Simon&#039;s day wasn&#039;t going to plan, was when he came back to the turnaround after  the 3rd lap. He was looking a bit pale and my words of encouragement, were meet  with what can only be described as a grunt. Happily through Simon confronted  and defeated his Ironman demons and finished in 10:18 and in third place.

I&#039;ve got 2 1/2 weeks of training left, before we fly out to Hawaii. I&#039;m getting  excited. Flights - check. Apartment - check. Insurance - check. Visa - Check.  Ridiculously oversized SUV hired to lug Simon, myself, Yvette and Steve and three  bikes (Simon&#039;s taking his P4! ) around Hawaii -Check.

Happy Training.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Reflecting and looking forwards!]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7481.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[It&#039;s been a while since my last entry, the main  reason for this has been my lack of computer access. Our computer has been  attacked by Internet Gremlins (!) aka a Torjan virus. I&#039;m now sitting in  Eastbourne Library making use of free computer access, which takes me back to  my student days and the time before broadband Internet was not necessity in  every household. Reminiscing on my student days will not be for much longer, as  I will start my part time Masters degree in early September. I&#039;m sure that this  degree will not result in gallivanting in Eastbourne Night Clubs Monday to  Thursday! But watch this space! 
Since Ironman UK I have had ups and down in recovery and training. It&#039;s taken  me almost three weeks to be happy with the outcome of the race, and this only happened  after a bit of a telling off from Coach - Sarah Coope - and my boyfriend pretty  much telling me I was acting like a spoilt brat! Yes my race at Ironman UK had  not gone 100% to plan, but I had only entered four weeks before and I had come  away achieving my goal of winning my age group and securing that Kona Spot. I  have been most frustrated by my stomach / nutritional problems I encountered in  both Ironman Nice and UK, something I haven&#039;t had problems with in the past and  not pulling off the run I think I am capable of. Since I have accepted this my  focus and drive have returned and training has been going well. A couple of  days riding to work and back early this week, left me a little shattered and  needing an unexpected rest day, but on the whole I&#039;m building the training back  up. This weekend I&#039;m doing a 100 mile Time trial to test out my revised  nutrition strategy - I&#039;m not sure if East Sussex will provide the weather which  will replicate that in Hawaii though. Considering today&#039;s wet and windy ride it&#039;s  unlikely.
On Thursday I had a lovely large bike sized box arrive from the US - my new  Quintana Roo CD 0.1! I will post a picture as soon it&#039;s built - the new 2011  colour is definitely exciting. I&#039;m a bit sad to be putting my QR Lucero away,  as we have had lots of adventures together over the past five years. It will have  one last race this weekend, before being stripped down. I hope it&#039;s a good  farewell race! 
]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: Ironman UK...and now Kona!]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7354.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Tri247 columnist Sarah Lovelock reported last month on her disappointment at &#039;only&#039; (!) finishing fifth in her age group at Ironman France, and thus missing the precious Kona qualifying slot that she was seeking. That lead to a relatively late notice decision to race Ironman UK...
...well, as we said then &amp;quot;we should be reading her Ironman UK report in early August...&amp;quot;, and here it is. Kona slot secured. Job done. Congratulations Sarah! 

Ironman UK  race report
Ironman UK  wasn&#039;t on my race plan initially, but I entered four weeks ago, after a  disappointing race at Ironman Nice. I knew that racing two Ironman races close  together would be tough, but hadn&#039;t quite anticipated how tired I would be post  race. It&#039;s now Wednesday, three days after Ironman UK  and I can honestly say that I am shattered. 
In the five weeks between Nice and UK  I felt like I had recovered and was ready to race again. I&#039;d been up with  Yvette Grice to have a look at the bike course and decided I had enough time to  get training and reacquainted to my Quintana Roo Lucero. I had also tweaked my  nutrition a little to ensure I carried all I needed and just picked up water. I  arrived in Bolton on Friday and registered and took a  little walk around T1, before heading to the Premier Inn, avoiding the rain  outside and enjoying a complete rest day, being glued to the television, namely  watching the Athletics. The rain and the television continued on Saturday,  interrupted by bike and bag racking, race briefing and some stretching!! Having  had problems being sick during Nice, I decided to ensure I eat early, so  immediately after the race briefing at 6pm  I was tucking into chicken and pasta. Bed at 9pm  for being up at 3am. 
Race morning preparation went without hiccups and I had  plenty of time in transition to get myself sorted and relaxed. At 5:30  all the athletes were paraded out of T1 to the lake for the 6am  start. I got in the water with some time to spare for a quick warm up. The  water was pretty grim, visibility less than Eastbourne sea  water due to algae! Hard to believe I know. I managed to position myself well  for the start and found a good combination of clear water and feet to follow. I  did manage to go a bit off course on the second lap. I didn&#039;t feel like I was  swimming particularly fast, but exited the water in 1:03.  Just shows that being relaxed whilst swimming is the key. 
After quite a long a  long run I entered a heaving and disorganised transition tent and had a slalom  course to contend with weaving in/out of changing athletes to exit. On route I  managed to slip on a muddy patch and land on my right hip, no injuries just a  bruised ego and getting a bit muddy. The rest of transition went smoothly and I  was quickly out onto the bike. As I left I heard Steve Clark (Yvette Grice&#039;s  husband and fantastic supporter) shout out that he thought I was first in my  age group, which spurred me on. The first lap of the bike went well and I felt  good, at the start of the second lap, just before the climb up Sheep House Lane,  my stomach started to feel funny, so I eased back up the climb hoping it would  settle. I did feel a bit better but my tummy was not 100%. My bike split was  not a quite as I had hoped/planned, but my easing back, seamed to have helped  my stomach and I had been able to keep down gels and drink on the third  lap.
I came into T2 feeling good and  ready to start the run, optimistic that my pre Nice training would see me  through. 
Onto the run I soon regretted putting on my white compression socks  immediately, when we hit what can only be described as a 4mile boggy loop.  Squelching through the mud, I lost a shoe in one particularly deep section and  spectacularly fell forward, getting covered in yet more mud. I was actually  glad to hit the tarmac and start the run down to Bolton.  At about 5-miles my lack of hard training on my TT bike began to show as my  back started to tighten and spasm, forcing a bit of a stretch stop. Once this  was sorted I got back into a bit of a rhythm, but was definitely running slower  than I had planned. A couple of miles later my stomach started to rebel again  and every time I pushed the pace I started to feel sick. Seeing Yvette (fellow  Bodyworks XTC athlete) just a couple of minutes back on what appeared to be a  fading Bella motivated me to keep running as much as possible. At the turn  around I contemplated pulling out as I was feeling so dreadful, but the thought  of a DNF, all the money spent and the possibility that my stomach would come  right again I carried on. I had been passed by a number of girls at this point  and did not know if they were in my age group or not. After mile 15 and a bit  of Coke, the proper vomiting started. I stopped at the side of the road, so  don&#039;t score points for puking whilst running I&#039;m afraid. At this point Yvette  came past in the opposite direction in first place, looking very  strong and running well. I was so excited for her, this being her first Ironman  win. The rest of my marathon was a mixture of walking and running when I could.  My stomach did eventually come around again three miles from the finish and I ran  continuously from then on in. I crossed the line at 11:20,  well off my goal time and sure that I had not won my age group. A phone call  from my boyfriend saw me jumping up and down in front of Bolton  town hall, screaming as he told me I had won my age group and I had my Kona  spot, having been following the race on Ironman Live.
I went into the race with a number of goals &amp;ndash; to have a swim  which I felt reflected the swim training hours I had done with Bodyworks XTC  over the past year, rather than near drowning experience I had at Nice. To  ideally go under 11 hours on what I knew would be a tough course. To win my age  group, and get my slot for Hawaii. I  should be happy that I did have a great swim, won my age group and qualified  for Kona, but a large part of me is disappointed with my performance and  overall time.
One of the best parts of the day was actually going back to  the Ironman finish between 15 and 17 hours to cheer on athletes. This was my  first time going back to the finish. I had not in Florida  &amp;ndash; looking after sick boyfriend, Hawaii  &amp;ndash; gutted having walked with stress fracture, Nice &amp;ndash; being in medical tent  still! I will definitely be going back and cheering on the finishers at future  races. I was so much fun cheering, clapping, dancing and sharing everyone&#039;s  post-race excitement/relief. Yvette was giving out finishers medals, but I  managed to drag her up the finish chute for a quick dance, for which I&#039;m sure  never to be forgiven for. Especially since my choice of song was the Cha Cha  Slide and the Macarena, and the young teens were outshining us.
Enough said &amp;ndash; Hawaii Bound! ]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Sarah Lovelock: Ironman France report]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_7227.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[Tri247 columnist Sarah Lovelock reports on her race at Ironman France. A top five age group finish and an 11:18 clocking would be deemed as success for most, but Sarah is on the hunt for a Kona spot and has now had to change here season plans, which means we should be reading her Ironman UK report in early August...

Less than a week after Ironman France  I find myself contemplating entering this years Ironman UK,  which is four weeks away. The reason is a less than happy performance at France.  I&#039;m still brooding over a race that didn&#039;t go to plan.
We arrived in Nice on Thursday afternoon, after a 6-hour  delay courtesy of a French Air Traffic control strike. But we and bikes arrived  safely, if not a bit stiff and very hungry. We were &amp;lsquo;holidaying&amp;rsquo; with family,  so were picked up and whisked off to our apartment in the old town. I had done  a great job of picking a place to stay, a beautiful four bedroom apartment with  frescoed ceilings about a five minute walk from the race start. The days leading  up to the race went without problems, a little bit of swimming, cycling and  running and a lot of resting and eating. My dad came out to join our support  crew and watch his first Ironman (maybe try to understand why his sensible  daughter (!) spends all her money and time doing triathlon, rather than saving for  a house - boring), on the Saturday. 
Race morning was a little hectic, due to a 30 minute wait for  the porta loo at the girls end of the transition area. This made for frantic  wetsuit putting on before heading to the swim start, only to join a huge line  of others doing the same. Simon and I eventually got on to the beach with a  couple of minutes to spare.
The swim was absolutely brutal. I was hoping that  with all my early swims I would be able to produce an Ironman Swim PB. But by  the 500m mark I had been properly dunked about four times, and had lost my goggles  twice already. I had a moment of proper panic but realising there was no way  out of the mass I buried my head, got out my elbows and started fighting back.  It was only when out on the second loop that I started to feel that I had some  space to swim in and could allow my breathing and stroke to settle. I was  frustrated when I exited the swim at 1:08  and made the long run through transition to my bike.
The bike route was  fantastic. A 20km flat section to get into a groove and get some fluids in  before the climbing started. There was plenty of drafting going on at the  section, with 20/30 riders coming past at a time, with male riders I had over  taken a couple of minutes back, coming back past. This combined with my anger  at the swim lead to a long list of obscenities being shouted at a pack coming past  and some drink bottle waving! Only to hear laughing from behind to see an  Ironman camera crew. There might have to be a lot of bleeping if this  makes the video.
I enjoyed the climbing and tried to reduce my braking on  the down hills as much as possible. I concentrated on drinking and keeping  cool, whilst enjoying the experience. When Simon hadn&#039;t come past me at the  halfway point on the bike I started to worry, knowing something wasn&#039;t right  with him. At this point I thought it would be stomach issues, as he has a  history of this, but later found out he was having asthma type symptoms. I  finally saw Simon at the short out and back section, and was a little relieved,  it also made me do my best descending &amp;ndash; aka minimal braking, so he didn&#039;t catch  me. After a long descent I hit the flat section and a pack of drafters &amp;ndash;  holding back the swearing this time. 
My legs were feeing fresh when I dismounted the bike and  headed onto the run. The run started great, I had a hot spot on my foot on the  bike, but by 5km this had reduced and I settled into a comfortable pace. By the  third loop, I started to feel very hot and was craving water to drink  and throw over me long before I got the aid stations and starting to feel  like my race was starting to fall apart. I should have taken this as a sign to  taken on more nutrition and salts, a lesson to taken into the next race! By the  fourth lap, I was feeling very hot and my stomach was cramping, I was  struggling to take in coke. The last 5km were really difficult, requiring a  porta loo stop due to an upset stomach. I&#039;m sure that venturing into the  loo was the trigger to make me vomit - the smell was revolting.
I finally got  to the finish line, having lost seven minutes in the last 5km. The worst past was  still to come, being overtaken in the last 200m by two girls in my age group,  moving from 3rd to 5th. I had no response to their  finishing sprints. I finished in 11:18.  All I could do post race was lay down, anytime I stood up I felt dizzy and  sick. After about an hour I decided I needed to go to the medical tent, whereby  my pale face, resulted in me being immediately guided onto a stretcher. My  blood pressure was taken 68/42, over the next couple of hours I slept, wrapped  in a foil blanket, whilst three units of fluid and some extra salts made their way  into my blood steam. I need to rethink my fuelling for the next race and make  sure I&#039;m taking on enough electrolytes. I had mainly decided to use the course  drink, Infinit, as I had tried it and got on with it during training. Something  I will not do again since the bottles given out, were of varying strength and  fullness. I&#039;ll be going back to mainly gels and carrying concentrated energy  drink again.
So a week after the race, I have found myself studying the  Ironman UK website and looking for reasonably priced and located accommodation.  I&#039;ve promised myself I&#039;ll make the decision, if to do it our not by the  morning!

UPDATE: I&#039;ve entered Ironman UK...]]></description></item></channel></rss>
