Rockman Off Road Ultra Triathlon

Doing the Rockman Off Road Ultra Triathlon a few weekends back, was a completely new challenge for me. It would be the first time I would be racing anything longer than Olympic distance. This race consists of 2km swim, 70km mountain bike and 18km run. I had no idea what to expect or how I would manage these distances. During training I did quite a few longer runs than 20km, but I have never even run a half marathon road race. I just wanted to go out and have some fun in the mud. 

Ruan and Rudolf discussing tactics before the race

The swim was nice and easy, I swam hard to get a little gap on my closest rivals, but only at about 75% effort. The 70km cycle, was going to be a real challenge, as it was far and it was very muddy as it rained continually for the previous week. The first 10km was good and I felt fine, then the mud part started. It was a clay/mud combination, so it got stuck to your tyres if you didn’t race with slicks. Unfortunately the mud built up was so bad that my wheel locked and I had to stop to try and get rid of some of the mud. Once I started cycling again I saw an athlete in front of me and when I caught them I realized it was someone who had swam quite a bit behind me. I was confused - either I took a wrong turn somewhere or he did. That made things quite interesting. I cycled well until we hit the mud again. There I was stuck again, but saw my brother in front of me. When I caught up to him he told me that a lot of people took a wrong turn. So we stopped again, cleaned the bikes and off we went to finish the first cycle lap. At this point I had no idea in which position I was – I only knew I was about 10th on the road. I just put my head down and cycled flat out. After a while my friend, Markus caught up to me and we cycled together for a while and then he dropped me. I was starting to think that this could end up being VERY long day and I still need to do the run. 

In the hurt box

It was 18km trail and I was feeling the effort on the bike in my legs. I ran a decent first lap, still doing good times. But the second lap took its toll and I started to run slower and slower. The last 5km was painful and I felt like dying, but I kept on running – I just decided not to walk, not to walk…. I am glad I didn’t. In the end I raced just under 5hours, more than double of what I am used to. It was the hardest race I have ever done – I felt like crying like a baby. I was happy that I finished and in the end I was 2^nd overall. This race was a huge confidence booster. 

The podium

This was the last race of the year. I am planning on doing the 70.3 in Buffalo City in January. For now it’s a few days off and then base training starts.

Cheers

Rudolf

African Cup - Kenya

The race on 10 November 2013 in Mombasa, Kenya was my last scheduled race on the ITU calendar for 2013. I wanted to end off the season on a high note after a disastrous season and obtain some points. I arrived on the Friday morning in Mombasa. The hotel was quite small but it had everything that I needed. I unpacked my bike to see if everything was in order and ready for race day. It was quite warm and humid so that would definitely play a part in the race on Sunday.

Saturday started with a swim in the sea on the race course. I felt quite good in the water and was confident with my swim. We then had breakfast and relaxed. We then cycled the route which was flat and fast, but I notice quite a few potholes in the road.  I realized it will be hard to make up ground if you lost time in the swim. The afternoon was just an easy run to loosen up the legs and get ready for the race.

On race day the sea was flat and everyone looked focused on the start line.  When the siren went I jumped onto eddies feet and followed him for a while. Two athletes had a small gap on us, but we were 5 athletes in the pack and I was comfortable on the feet of the Italian in front of me. The transition from the swim to the cycle was very quick. After half a lap we caught two athletes, but one athlete got dropped from our pack. Everyone was working well, except for one Polish guy. He only did his turn once per lap. On the final lap he tried to come to the front and dodged a pothole by swinging to the left side. Unfortunately, I was on his left and also had to swing to the left to try and avoid him. I hit a pothole and came down pretty badly; my body was full of scratches and my bike out of action.  That was the end of the race for me.

It was a disappointing end to the ITU season, but I still have one more race left for 2013. I am hoping to end the year on a high note at the Rockman Off Road Race.

Until then

Cheers

Rudolf

World Champs - London

The ITU WTS World Championships were held in London. I really wanted to visit London so I was really excited to be able to participate. We were lucky enough to fly straight to London without a transfer. We got there safe and sound and after good night’s sleep we were ready for a few days of normal routine before the race.

On race day the nerves were high. I just came off a relatively good 5150 in BelaBela, so I was hoping to continue on the good form. The race was also emotional, because the Olympics were held here just over a year ago and it was magic to race at the same venue. I had a good start in the swim, I started on the side so I did not get bunched in form both sides. There was a downside to this too; I was forced wide around the turn buoys. I worked hard form there till the end of the swim lap and gained a few places. The second lap was a lot better and I found my swimming rhythm. I exited the water in about the middle of the field.

The lead pack had about 21 athletes and the second pack had about 5. I just missed the second pack but was in front of the 3rd pack. I waited for them on the cycle and then we worked hard to get up to the 2nd pack. The first 3 laps were raced at an incredible fast pace, unfortunately I lost both my water bottles during the first 2 laps…. After we caught the 2nd pack I sat in the group saving energy and working every now and then. We finished the cycle leg at about 35s behind the front pack. It was all down to the run now. I knew this was my week point, because I had a nasty injury and missed a lot of running the past few months.

I went out and gave it everything I had in the run. During the last lap I faded a bit, which could be as a result of the injury and the lack of water on the cycle. I finished in 37th position. I am happy with the result and I was glad I had the opportunity and privilege to race. I was hoping for better but on the day that’s all that I could do.

Thanks to everyone who made it possible for me to be able to race World Champs. Also thank you for everybody who has supported me during my years in triathlon. I will be taking a break from training and start again in October. Racing will start in November with the African Champs 5150.

Until then

Cheers

Rudolf

5150 BelaBela

The 5150 in BelaBela would be the first time I was racing since the African champs in May. I was very excited, but at the same time very nervous. I really wanted to have a good performance to boost my confidence before I leave for the World Champs in London a few weeks later.

The race was a normal Olympic distance race but the cycling was non drafting, so this made it fun and exciting. We started in waves and the pro’s and pro-elites were first. I started next to Wian, because he is a great swimmer. I knew if I could stick with him in the swim I will have a good swim. It turned out to happen, as I exited the 1500m swim next to him.

We had a small gap on 3rd and 4th place. After a quick transition we were out on the cycle. Wian was setting a good pace and I tried to keep up with him, but my legs weren’t there on the cycle.

After about 8km Wikus caught me and I stayed with him for a while. I thought then, this will be a long day for me after Travis came flying past me. I decided then not to panic and just focus on the here and now and trying to cycle as well as I can. During the 2nd lap I felt much better and I started to gain some ground on some of the athletes, so I was feeling more confident after the 2nd lap.

The run was going to be mentally and physically hard because I haven’t really ran as much as I wanted. I had an injury and couldn’t run for several weeks. My form on the run was going to be a surprise, but I knew I had to go out hard and hope for the best. Starting the run, I was in 4th place so the race was still on. I felt good on the run and was running a steady tempo. I stayed in 4th position until the finish, but I gained a lot of confidence from the race heading to World Champs. In the end the result might not have been the best, but mentally it was a good race for me.

World champs will be in London in 3 weeks’ time and I am hoping for another solid result there.

Until then

Cheers

World Cup, Ishigaki

The first World Cup which of raced during  my 2013 season, was in Ishigaki, Japan. It was a long, 30 hour travel from Johannesburg, but I was looking forward to the race. The weather really wasn’t playing along on race day; it was cold and rainy so that made for a scary bike on a technical course.

I didn’t have a good start to the first lap of the 1500m swim and was almost last in the swim after 50m. I just couldn’t get out of the blocks fast and that made for a tough swim. I kept to the back of the swim and just hoped that the athletes in front of me don’t loose the feet in front of them. After the first lap I decided to try and move myself up and was hoping that I can have a good race after that. I could see that I was passing a few athletes and gaining on the pack in front.  In the end of the swim I was 2^nd pack and the leaders weren’t too far ahead of me.

The cycle was hard from the start. As the hill was just 50m after transition, I just knew I had to stay in the group. The complete first lap was hard and then my legs settled in and I started to feel good on the bike. We caught up a few athletes that were dropped from the front pack. Because it was very wet and slippery, the main focus was to stay upright, but still go hard. A lot of athletes crashed on the challenging route - there was a huge crash in the front pack taking out 6 guys, so everyone was scared after that and didn’t want to go down. I had a strong bike and I thought my legs were feeling good after the cycle but then on run decided otherwise.

The route was hard but only 3 laps so mentally it was better than a 4 lap run. I gave it my all and hoping to get a good result. But in the end I was 15^th and happy with the result.

There are a lot of positives to take out of this race – which I definitely will.

I thank everyone who made it possible for me to race in Japan, my sponsors and especially my parents who believed in me.

Until next time

Cheers

SA National Championships

During this past weekend, the SA National Championships was held in East London(Buffalo City). I was hoping to have a great race, training and preparation was going good and I was also feeling good.

The swim start was fast, but I had a good position comfortably in the main pack. Just before the end of the first lap on the swim, some athletes caught a wave and I just missed it. I had to run hard back into the sea again to get onto the feet of the front pack. I managed to do so. The run up to transition was long and hard, but I was able to maintain contact with the group. T1 was not as fast as I hoped for, but it was good enough to be in the main chase pack. We worked well on the bike, rotating nicely, trying to reel in the 2 athletes which was about 30sec up the road.  Then disaster struck…  I got a puncture 3km into the cycle.

My race was over and my day ruined as I had to unfortunately pull out. One positive was the way my swim went after some difficulty in the past.

Cheers

Rudolf

Fast triathlon Brazil

I was invited to compete in a triathlon in Brazil together with my friends Wian and Wikus. This was no ordinary triathlon, it was a super sprint. The format was as follows: 3 heats comprising of 200m swim, 3.6km cycle and 1km run with about 10 min rest between the heats. All athletes have to race all the heats. Teams consisted of 3 athletes and 6 countries was taking part.

The travelling was long but manageable, we travelled to Sao Paulo and then to Rio followed by a 3hrs bus trip to the hotel. We were quite tired so sleeping the first night was easy.

The next day we went for a cycle and explored a bit of the country side, it was really beautiful, the sea was blue and the sand was white, it was like paradise. It was really warm during the time we were there so we thought swimming in the sea will be nice and cool. Unfortunately the sea was a bit too cool, it was close to freezing temperature for us. We knew that was going to be a bit of a challenge in the race, but since the swim was so short, we realised that it wasn't too bad. On race day we will just have to swim fast to get out of the cold water.

On race day we didn't know what to expect. We have never done races in this format before. But we were determined to do well. During the first heat, the swim was a shock to the system and the run from the sea to T1 felt like miles. The American Zaferes got a gap on all the athletes as result of a huge wave assisting him.  On the bike Wikus and I rode well together in the first bunch, but the American Zaferes lapped all of the athletes so only he got points. The bike laps was only 600m.

In the second heat I had a good swim, but my transition wasn't to great and I missed the front pack. I was in the 2nd pack and I saw Zaferes was catching us again. Wian and Wikus was in the front pack so I thought if I slowed down the group and Zaferes catches us then we would be the only country having two athletes to get points. But he didn’t lap us so everyone got points and it was down to the last race to see who would podium.

Everyone was giving it all in the swim and the cycle was pretty much bunched up together, it came down to the run and everyone was tired. Our team ended up in 3rd place. We were happy with it but we knew we made mistakes that cost us the win. This has been an amazing journey seeing Brazil and getting to know new people. The county is amazing and the people are friendly.

Thank you to everyone making this trip a reality.

My next race will be national championships in 3 weeks time.

Until then

Cheers

Rudolf

Sprint African Cup, Cape Town

My first ITU race of the year was the Sprint African Cup in Cape Town. After my satisfying race at the Joburg City Tri,  I was feeling confident for another good race. Last year I had a very bad swim in this race and I wanted to clear that bad experience and focus only on the positives.

I did a long swim warm up to get accustomed to the icy cold sea, to avoid this being a shock to my system when I start the race. As the gun went off I sprinted and settled in with a good rhythm. The swim was done in a flash and before I knew it we were going back to the beach. I had no idea where I was in the race, but when I came into T1 I saw that I was in the top 5 and I knew then the race was on - not like last year.

 We formed a big bike bunch and caught the athletes that had a gap on the swim within 3km. It was then playing cat and mouse before we were organised again and worked well. During the last lap it was playing cat and mouse again, everyone wanted to rest a bit before the run. The transition was frantic with all the athletes trying to get out first. I started the run a bit slower than what I was supposed to. But I knew if I go out to fast I blow up so I was bit to cautious. In the end it cost me2 positions, but I still achieved my goal of top 10 in the race. This year has already been much better than last year and it only started now.

 The next race will be the fast tri in Brazil, this is going to be a new experience

Until then

Cheers

Joburg City Tri

The first race of the season was the Jhb City tri at Germiston lake. I was feeling confident, and was excited to see how I would perform with a solid base. I haven't done any real speed work so that would also be interesting to see how that would affect me.

In the swim I felt good, I was swimming with Wikus throughout the 1.5km, we set a good tempo from the start and till the end. We exited the swim together and was starting the 40km TT. I enjoy doing some TT every now and then, so was looking forward to this one. We had to do 4 x 10km laps.  The first lap was fine and we felt good, but from the 2nd lap we started to catch the back markers of the race. This made us to concentrate more as we had to side other athletes now. We managed to do it successfully an got in a good bike split. I was thinking this base is really paying off and I still felt good.

I was feeling really good on the run, but got clear instructions from my coach to take it easy - so I was just ticking over the legs and finishing the race. I felt really good. I was happy with my performance and I claimed the u/23 CGT title as well.

I have a feeling this year is going to be a good year for me.

Until later

Cheers

Rudolf