Run, Cycle, Swim

Check out these photos from Saturday's adventure race, and there's plenty more where they came from. Is it any wonder that I'm now frantically trying to figure out a way of doing this next year without having to skip any other major targets? As far as Adventure Races go, this one would suit me perfectly: it is close to home, the kayak part is mercifully short and the cycling part is on the road but still tough enough to stop anyone from saying you chickened out of a proper challenge. I'm not sure if I can fit this in next year; road running will always be my top priority, but I have the sneaking suspicion that I will be on the start line of that event sooner rather than later, and this time I'm not talking about the relay option.

Anyway, my quads were indeed sore on Sunday, though not as bad as they had been after the Wexford half marathon, which leave me hopeful that the real training for Dingle can start sooner rather than later. I did 5 easy miles on Sunday and then opted for the bike on Monday in order to get some blood flowing into the legs without subjecting them to the trauma of running on tarmac. It wasn't until the end of the workout that I thought I should have turned this into a brick workout with a short running section. Maybe next time.

Today I received a benefit for sacrificing my legs for the team on Saturday in form of a swim buddy for an open water swim. My swimming has taken a dive (lousy pun, sorry) since the triathlon mainly because I detest having to drive to Killarney and back on my swim mornings. This costs me over an hour of my very precious morning time and I really did not like it. On the other hand, I live in an area called “Caragh Lake”, which should give you a clue for an alternative option. However, I had never dared to swim there because a) I don't want to do it on my own and b) I was worried about an algae infestation. Well, on Saturday Kathryn (who had done the mountain running) told me that the algae had not been blooming this year due to the lack of rain in spring (now that is an unexpected bonus!) and offered to come with me this morning. So we met up at 7 o'clock in the morning at the one available path to the lake, which luckily happens to be merely a quarter mile from home. I also put my Garmin into my swim cap, a trick I had learned from this chap (and this one, too), to get an idea on the distance covered. This worked very well indeed, much better than expected, but Kathryn seemed to have enough after 20 minutes and we called it a day then. I think her thin wetsuit isn't as suited to swimming in Irish waters than mine. Me, I'm very grateful for every molecule of insulation on mine, even though getting in and out seems to be getting more difficult each time.

13 Jun

5 miles, 40:46, 8:09 pace, HR 150

14 Jun

15+ miles cycling

15 Jun

25 minutes swimming