Transitions and Transitions

In a triathlon, the concept of going from the swim to the bike, and from the bike to the run, is called 'transitions', and the specific area set aside to do all this is called the 'transition area'.

The transition area is a place of frenzy where athletes' only concern is for themselves. When you're in there, it's like everything you do goes in slow-motion whilst everyone around you seem to speed effortlessly from start to finish. It's where a race can literally be won and lost. Well executed transitions can shave a couple of minutes off a race time, and just think how much swim, bike or run training you need to do to gain the same time-advantages. It's free time. Easy time.

I have become somewhat of an expert at transitions over the years. At Duston recently I came out of the swim in last place out of the five in my wave, but was out on the bike well ahead of the four others. They never did catch me up.

So, I thought I would share my knowledge with a few friends and club colleagues this week by holding a transitions training session over the local village green. Two hours later and I hope they went away with some useful time-saving tips - subsequent feedback certainly indicates that they did.

Whilst transitions take us from one part of a race to another, life also seems to take us from one thing to another. This week saw the final game of the season for my Under 11's, and the time it has free'd up now gives me the opportunity to crank up the training.

The team were up against one of the title-contenders so we weren't expecting too much, but I have to say that all the boys acquitted themselves very, very well and came away from a very close match just at the wrong end of a 2 - 1 scoreline. It's been a long, hard season, but we have ended up with more players than we started with which means that we must be doing something right. They do seem to have enjoyed themselves and, after all, that's what it's all about, isn't it?

Here's the mottley crew (me in the middle at the back)...



Doing something you enjoy is of course very important. I enjoy swimming, biking, running - in particular, I enjoy putting it all together for race days. After a thoroughly enjoyable start to the season recently at Duston, I am positively salivating at the thought of the season ahead.

Before then, though, there's plenty of training, and this is what I did last week:-

Monday – swim - club swim, 50 press-ups and 50 sit-ups
Tuesday – bike – very hard interval session
Wednesday – bike - gym spin (fixed wheel), run - 30/30 interval session, swim - 400m TT in 6:55, 50 press-ups and 50 sit-ups
Thursday - rest day, 50 press-ups and 50 sit-ups
Friday - bike – hard hill repeats, run - hard hill repeats (hopping)
Saturday – swim - open water at Liquid Leisure
Sunday – bike – semi-fast road bike with Dan and Robin from tri club

This week I am starting a more intense, interval-based training regime in order to improve speed. Plenty of brick (back-to-back run/bike) sessions, some open water swimming and some specific hill and speed work. Nothing for the faint-hearted.

I will be ending the week at Bedford which I have been looking forward to for a long time. I haven't done this race since the end of the 2007 season, and at a time when I was riding my old bike, so I am looking forward to a PB. I am going up with Peter, one of the guys from the Old Thatch Cinema Society, who did actually do a triathlon about 20 years ago but is now getting back into it. Peter was at the transition training last week and has promised that he won't try to beat me with his new found transition skills! I might just have to tie his laces together in transition when he's not looking just to make sure...

More news same time next week.

Cheers.

C