The gear, bike, and myself have arrived safely back in Australia. It is always nice returning after a trip but this time I got even more of a surprise with the amount that Sam's tummy has grown out in the front. From behind you cannot notice a change but when she turns to the side, wow. Four more months of this amazing experience before we welcome the bub. I am not sure how big it will get but by the look of things so far, I could not imagine how Sam could have coped if there were twins inside!
On the training front, I have been turning over with a few runs and a couple of bike rides. It is seriously cold here in Australia in the mornings with a large amount of towns having their 'coldest ever days'. I have to say I have crept back into bed twice after heading out to grab my running shoes from a frozen/frosty balcony. Bed is soooo nice when you do not have to get out at 5am for a session.
Time to brave the mornings again though as the recovery period is over. It is run focus time and entry into the Sydney Marathon on the 21st September is in the plans. I have only run one straight marathon before in 2000 two weeks after my first Ironman. I helped a mate to break the 3 hour barrier and I think we came in around 2:58hrs. I had also ran backwards on the course for a bit to help another mate to try a crack the 3hr mark, so it should be interesting to see what I can pull out running the marathon straight for myself. The bike and swim will still get a go each week but with more of a run focus, I am looking forward to the different training that it will entail. Always nice to try something different.
Looking back on Roth, the race is magnificent. The Solarberg lives up to all the pictures you see and the noise is unbelievable. Now that I know the course I will be able to prepare a bit better for it. Also, my host family were great and made the experience memorable. I will be catching up with the Fuersts again for sure. There were the most amount of spectators on course at Roth that I have seen anywhere in the world for an Ironman. And this was on a day where it was 10 degrees and pouring with rain. It is a very honest course. The swim in the canal makes it comfortable for both good swimmers and those that are not confident with plenty of space in the canal and good wave starts to break it up. The bike course is a little more technical than I thought it would be with a fair few rolling hills. It is not a flat course like Western Australia or Florida but the roads are good. The run is very much dead flat on either a gravel or concrete surface (predominantly gravel) which allows for you to get into a good rhythm. On the run at each village there seemed to be beer tables set up and people in a 'jovial' mood. Great support to get you out of a troubled patch or continue flying along. Nice forest and off road parts with some long stretches on the canal make it a good mental challenge also. Really, you can work your strength on this course and go for a good overall time. This all said, it is not an easy course and you can be lulled into a sense of going for it when tempering the pace is needed. Many an athlete has seen the wheels tumble off a pb due to this fact. The mini 'stadium' of the hemisphere finish chute is 'goosebumpy' and where else do athletes get a bouquet of flowers to carry into the chute to finish with unless you are the top 3? Then being handed the Erdinger beer straight after the finish line is a great way to celebrate.
Did it live up to the hype? Most definitely. I can only imagine what it would be like on a sunny day and it is something I hope to experience because I will definitely be making my way back.
When I get my race photos I will post a few and also some of the training grounds around Eckental. Time to go battle the cold weather and the Sydney traffic and dream of the warm weather around the corner.
Cheers,
Bevan.
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