The biggest race of my life?

Here I am. Two days out from the biggest race of my life.

The Ironman World Championships. Kona. The birthplace of triathlon and the race every triathlete wants to get to.

The race I never thought I would get to, never seriously considered. It wasn’t even on my radar to be honest.

A sore tail. Or tale?

Clinique General. Annecy. 7pm. 31^st July 2017.

I limped in through the automatic doors into the cool air-conditioned reception. The place was deserted. Not much call for private hospital services at such an hour on a Monday at the start of the big French holiday season.

Cloud 9 got up and left

The Fluelpass. 2,383 meters above sea level. And cold with it, but too good an opportunity to miss to camp, up high, with impressive glacier views and the hypnotic sound of alpine cattle bells clinking in the misty distance.

Victor and I stopped, just shy of the summit and parked up. I was fully stocked with provisions and ready for a cosy cuppa as the gathering gloom outside hid Victor’s galaxy grey from view. Camouflaged against the rocks, roof lifted, I made a van-type feast and climbed up into bed with thermals on and a woolly hat.

Careful where you camp!

I’m never satisfied. Never happy with what I’ve got. I’m always looking to go faster, be leaner, get stronger or simply try out the grass that seems greener on the other side. Living in a van has helped with some aspects of this but when it comes to racing and training I think I’m worse than ever!

A week off a PB ironman performance and I’m already wondering what I should do next (after Hawaii of course).

Keep your eyes peeled…

Victor and I are back on the road again…so keep your eyes peeled for my (hopeful) regular blogs posts.

I’m now only 5 days out from my biggest race of the year – Ironman Austria. Its been a busy few months getting here:

Over-training and under-travelling

It’s been a while. We’re over two months in to a new year now and I’ve been meaning to write an update as to my plans for a while now. As I sit on a flight to Mallorca (more on this later) I have finally found the space and mindset to do so.

The Bay of Pollenca

“Flight?” I hear you say. What about Victor? Well, for a short while I’ve come away without my beloved rolling home. He’s is safely ensconced at my folks house, full of the bits of my life that aren’t locked away in my attic at home.

Solitude on wild beaches

It is Christmas and I am ensconced in England, cosy amongst family at my parent’s house. Fret not however, Victor has not been abandoned as I am sleeping in him, parked out on my Mum and Dads drive while the house is full of brothers, nieces, nephews and chaos! He offers a quiet space; a familiar, calm bolt hole, and with an oil filled radiator plugged in, makes for a pretty luxurious* space. (*in a loose sense of the word).

So where did I leave you last time? I’d just completed my coast to coast traverse of northern Spain and found myself in the fishing town of Muros.

So much wine, so little time – a coast to coast trip across Spain

From one ferry to the next. Last time I was on board from Alcúdia to Barcelona. Today I’m enjoying the hospitality of Brittany Ferries on the Cap Finisterre from Bilbao to Portsmouth as I head back to England for the festive season and some well-earned warm showers.

It’s been a remarkable whistle-stop tour of some of Spain that has seen me head not south as I had originally intended but east to west across the whole of northern Spain – Cataluna, Aragon, Castilla y Leon, Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria. Unfortunately I seem to have skirted round La Rioja but be assured I have assisted with the local economy of the region in ways I am sure you can guess.

A week in the life of…

I’m looking at the horizon. The sea is calm. The sky is blue. And the ferry is steady enough.

Goodbye Mallorca 😦 I’m sad to leave – it’s been terrific. I’ve made new friends, enjoyed the company of old ones, laughed an awful lot, eaten my body weight in ice cream and pizza (and subsequently now have a little bit of extra insulation ready for winter and Christmas back in Hampshire) and enjoyed some of the best cycling and swimming there is to be had anywhere.

But, for all the superb experiences of the last month, I am also happy to be getting back on the road – me and Victor are ready to go exploring again 🙂

Challenge Peguera-Mallorca

Wednesday 12^th October dawned as an overcast and breezy day. The race around the Mediterranean coast had one more stint to it – my arrival in Barcelona for the overnight ferry to Alcudia, Mallorca.

I left Collioure and wound my way southwards along the quiet coast and across the border into Spain. No guards, no passport control, no stopping, no no one.