Korea

The final racing chapter for this year was two 70.3 races in Korea. This was going to be a good test because of the fact that the races was only 2 weeks apart and this will be the first time I attempt this. Balancing the races, recovery as well as being a tourist was going to be difficult, but I thought I could manage that.

The first race was in Incheon, where it was very hot and humid. This was a very tough race as South Africa just came out of winter and I wasn’t prepared for the heat. The swim was in a canal and was quite enjoyable. The cycle was a bit technical in the first 8km as we had to navigate about 8 U turns and several 90 degree turns. This hurt the legs for the run and the rest of the cycle. To make matters worse we had to do 3 laps of the bike. I felt good for the first 2 laps and then suddenly I started to cramp a bit. But nothing too bad, just the body’s way of saying listen here you are on the limit. I was glad when the cycle was done and was eager for the run to start. My running felt good in training and I was happy to start the run. The first 10km was good and I felt that if I can keep this pace I will be very happy. Unfortunately the wheels came off and I suffered the last half of the run. I ran slower and slower and I was in a lot of pain. I managed to soldier on and finish the race in 7^th position.

It was a good learning curve, but I felt drained emotionally and physically. I wanted to go home and even asked my mom to change my flights so I could come back and rest and start to prepare for next year. She talked me out of it and I had to stay and focus to get my mind back on track for the next race. 

For the next two weeks the focus was just on recovery and enjoying the city. My brother and I one day went to Everland just to clear the mind a bit and have some fun. It was also good to bond with my brother for 3 weeks, some quality time together.

The second race was in Gurye in the south, a beautiful little town in the mountains, luckily we didn’t have to climb the mountains in the cycle leg. I went into the race with a little bit less stress knowing that whether it a good or bad race, the whole mission of this trip was to gain experience and learn how my body reacts to what I’m putting it through. The cycle is still my main problem with the longer distance races, I know I need to pick it up quite a lot. During the race there was a group of about 6 athletes cycling together. I told myself, you can crawl the run but you have to push and stick with the group. And I managed to do just that, sticking with them was very hard but mentally it was a huge boost. Surprisingly the run was quite good until the last 5km. I was sitting comfortably in 6^th position and was only overtaken in the last km to finish in 7^th.

 This was a great trip, with a huge mountain of experience gained and three weeks bonding with my older brother. It was emotionally and physically draining, but I feel like I came out of this a stronger athlete.  I feel like I am improving with regards to race experience and strategy with every race.

I have some off time now and in a few weeks I will begin to prepare for the 2016 season.

Cheers

Rudolf

70.3 Durban

Since the announcement of the Durban 70.3 race in January, racing this has been high on my priority list. It would be a big race in my home country and all my friends and family could be there for support. This just added to the hype for the race and also made the nerves grow even more. This would have been only my fourth ever 70.3 distance race and the 3^rd one for this year.

The pro field was small with only 6 athletes but the competition still strong. The race favourite was Stuart Marias, having won a 70.3 during 2014, coming second in the 70.3 East London in 2015 and winning Knysna big 5 challenge recently.  However, I was still determined to have a good race and perform well. The race started early in the morning and there was a chilly wind blowing. Coming from an ITU background, my swimming was my strength and I had to use that strength to the full potential. As I am still lacking some power on the bike, I needed to have a good swim. As the hooter went, we were off and the 4 hour adventure started. I felt good during the swim and pushed the pace the whole way, until the last buoy when I swam a bit off course, but all in all I was happy. This means one of the 3 disciplines was on par. But the big test was coming now the cycle leg.

It was the most amazing feeling that I have ever had, leading the bike on an official Ironman 70.3 race (even only for a while). The feeling was surreal, but I knew I had to focus and concentrate. I felt good and was feeling like I was going at a good pace until Stuart caught up. He came flying past like I was looking for parking. I knew then that the real race was on and I tried sticking with Stuart, but after about 1km I realized that I wouldn’t be able to handle that pace. I backed off a bit and the settled into my pace again. Just before the halfway point the rest of the pro’s caught up. I stressed a bit there because my 45second advantage in the swim had been wiped away quicker than what I had hoped for. For about 10km the pace was really high and I was struggling a bit to keep with the pace, but luckily the pace settled down and everyone relaxed to more “normal” pacing on the bike. I think everyone realized that Stuart was in a race of his own and we were competing for the minor places on the podium. 

  

It would all come down on the run for the rest of us. We all entered transition almost together. Once I started running I had a bit of extra adrenaline and went out a bit too fast and eager to run. Luckily after about 2km I realized this and decided to slow down to what I think would be a good race pace. During the run I slowly moved up in the field and after 8km I was in 3^rd position. I thought this would be an amazing result if I can hold on. This would become quite tough as I felt more fatigued with every step that I took. The last 6km of the run was pure pain and torture. I suffered a lot, but couldn’t slow down as the 4^th place was hunting me down. At the last km of the race I was only 30sec ahead of 4^th place but I still pushed to the end, just for a bit of insurance. I am really happy with my performance. This was the best race of my life thus far and I felt on top of the world.

Changing to longer distances has been a real challenge but it seems quite successful thus far. I am enjoying the triathlon more than ever.

My next race will be 70.3 Incheon followed by 70.3 Gurye both in Korea. This will bring an end to my successful season, but hopefully I can end it on an even higher note.

Cheers

Rudolf