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Home Contacts Calendar 10km Series Super Series Blister Results & Ladders Sydney Runs +Maps |
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Home Contacts Calendar 10km Series Super Series Blister Results & Ladders Sydney Runs +Maps |
Selby retires! What can you do when a headline like this appears in the Blister ? A 10k, half or full marathon, 6 foot track, Brindabella didn't seem enough. No, only a World Championship would do. Never mind the training needed, run and bike, and the fact that you need to qualify! The first thing to do was get a training programme. This meant 3 runs, 3 rides a transition session and, for the first time in my life, 2 workouts in the gym with the jocks. It also meant getting up at 5.15 am which is also something new. There were two qualifying races - Wagga States and Canberra Nationals. The first was wet and the second absolutely freezing, around 0º C. I was able to place 2nd in Wagga and 5th in Canberra in my age group, so that was the first objective achieved, selection in the Australian team.
The downside of qualifying was that the training increased, now 8-9 sessions weekly, half of which were high intensity. Hill climbs, intervals, transitions, 40k race pace rides. I am grateful to Sarah, Gary, Paul and others for helping and keeping the motivation going. I couldn't wait for the plane to leave so I could have a rest!
Eventually the time came and Angela, Jonathan and I were off - via a quick trip to Adelaide for 2 hours for work. After all the effort I'd put in I was paranoid that something would go wrong on the way. I thought we were OK until we reached Rome and were about to board our flight to Bologna. Our luggage, more importantly my bike, was still in the airport and hadn't been put on the plane. As a result we missed our flight. I shouldn't have been surprised, given the airline we were flying (libel laws prevent me saying too much). Still, this gave us a chance to meet a large bunch of Americans, also going to Ferrara, and a taste of the international flavour that was to come. One of them told me he was in my age group, then casually dropped the fact that he had come second in the American trials. I was less than impressed - trying to psyche me out and we hadn't even arrived! He reminded me of Dave Ritchie.
Ferrara is described as a renaissance town in the North East of Italy, between Bologna and Padua and about 100k from Venice. It has a castle, a cathedral and a medieval town wall (I knew this because it has a home page on the Web). The reality was not quite as expected, although it was a pleasant enough place, with lots of local cyclists, winding streets and flat roads.
Over 1500 people had turned up for the Championships (1100 or so were age-groupers and the rest professionals). This meant that the hotels were all oversubscribed and a group of Australians, including the three of us, were assigned to the "Hotel from Hell" - one single room for me and a double room for Angela and Jonathan. It was a good thing we didn't bring more than one bag and a bike because there wasn't room for anything else. I kept looking for the bars on the windows. Still, once we got out and about and soaked up the atmosphere it didn't seem so important. Just wandering around with athletes from so many other countries was a buzz. In all there were 37 countries represented, including one competitor from St Kitts and Nevis.
The highlight before the race was the opening ceremony. Each team gathered in the old town and marched together to the cathedral square, with a large crowd watching. We each had our own flag bearer and banner holder dressed in traditional costume. When we reached the square we waited while we were introduced by an English announcer - "and now we welcome a country with one of the best records in triathlon and duathlon - AUSTRIA. What? not Austria? Oh, Australia. Oh yes, that's right, they're out of alphabetical order again." Now I understood why our luggage came out in the EEC section at Bologna airport! The Brazilians thought it was Carnivale and danced, bounced and sang their way through the town. They still hadn't stopped when we left on the Monday.
There was a pasta party after this, where I had a chance to finally meet the other Australians in my age group, who somehow had managed to get into the best hotel in Ferrara with most of the rest of the team.
The pros raced on the Saturday. They ran the same course as we were going to, but their ride went around the old town wall. This is what we were supposed to do, but at the last moment the organisers decided to change the course and we were to do 40k out and back to a local village. It was great to be an Australian in the crowd. In both the men's and women's races Australians led from start to finish, taking out both events (Andrew Noble and Jackie Gallagher). We also had 3 of the first 6 men. It made people very aware of all the Australians, including the age teams, and meant that the following day there were plenty of encouraging calls.
The weather could not have been better. It was sunny, clear, windless and about 15º C. 1100 age-groupers gathered in the Piazza Ariostea in readiness for the race. I hadn't done a race like this before where the quality of the competition was so high, let alone the bikes they were riding. I now knew why triathletes shave their legs - it is a psychological ploy for when your bike isn't as good as everyone else's.
By this stage I was getting very nervous. I knew what to expect in a marathon, but this was something I wasn't used to. Waiting for the women and younger ages to start was nerve-wracking, particularly since no-one seemed to want to talk. This was serious stuff! We had been told that the starts would be 5 minutes apart, but the organisers again excelled themselves and we all went off 3 minutes behind each other. This certainly made for a compact event, especially on the ride.
The run set off from the piazza and then into the old winding streets of Ferrara. There was a reasonably large crowd all the way and lots of encouragement. The first run (supposedly 10k) was 2 loops of this course. I was trying not to go too hard, as I had done in Wagga and Canberra, but was pleased to finish the run in just on 34 minutes (what! the Italians get the distance wrong? never- it's a PB).
I was feeling good when I got onto the bike. The conditions were still perfect and the road absolutely flat with a good surface. Ferrara is only small so very quickly we were out in the countryside, where there were still lots of spectators. All of the competitors were on the road so it was crowded but meant that there were some good riding times. The 40k seemed to go very quickly and we were in the Piazza again.
As soon as I got off the bike I realised just how hard the ride had been. My glutei maximi were absolutely screaming and it was almost impossible to run into the transition with my bike, let alone bend down and put my shoes on. This is where the Strider's experience came in. I thought about how I felt going down the hill at the end of the 6' track or the end of the Pymble Pushover and suddenly it didn't seem too bad. It only took about 500 metres and I was able to stretch out again. I started to run past people and suddenly I began to feel a lot more comfortable.
This time it was only one leg of the run course - through the streets, past the cathedral, over the cobblestones outside the castle, into the main street where I saw one of the other Australians in my age group. There was only about 500 metres to go and I felt confident I could catch him. This time I thought of all those 10k races and put in a bit more effort. I cut inside the last corner leading up to the last long stretch and then raced to the end. I had finished in 1.53.58, 34th in my age group and 2nd Australian. I was pleased. I couldn't have gone any harder. I knew this because I couldn't walk! I needed Jonathan to hold me up (see photo) Still, this wasn't new and memories of Jenolan caves came flooding back. I had enjoyed this race immensely and everything leading up to it.
The closing ceremony was held that evening in the Piazza. The Brazilians were still partying, the New Zealanders doing the haka and the Australians getting the prizes. The results were available already and I was most impressed me by the winning times in each of the men's age groups:
20-24 1.40.05 35-39 1.38.23 25-29 1.38.47 40-44 1.38.59 30-34 1.38.10 45-49 1.39.23
This meant that the winner in my age group was only just over 1 minute slower than the fastest time for any age!
After this I needed a holiday so we went to Turkey. I'd recommend this to anyone. I'd also recommend that if the opportunity is there to do something like go to a World Championship or anything else that requires that extra bit of effort, then do it. It's worth it in the end.
Old Thimbleheart is back!
