Kesä training

Summer is always much better for the training than other seasons. My quality of training improves a lot and the volume goes up as well. That explains why my first races of the year are always a little disappointing. But now is when the fun begins.

After Switzerland I took it very easy for a week or so then began serious training again. I have also done two smaller races for training. First was our club's own Juhannus triathlon where I easily won with a strong run. Second event was last saturday in Kisko where I also easily won with a time under 2 hours for the 1500m, 45km, 10.5km event. Nice to have a 7 minute lead by the finish too, but some of that was due to the fact my coach Mika Luoto was using the event for a final tune up for Ironman Austria next weekend and really backed off the pace during the run.

Now my fitness is really coming up quickly and I will probably race Olympic distance national championships in a couple weeks for training purposes. Then see what kind of result I can get at the Jorioinen 1/2 distance nationals in three weeks. Two weeks after that is Ironman 70.3 Antwerp where I would really like to get a good result. I feel like anything is possible at this point so I will continue to push hard and maximize every possible training opportunity.

Swiss cheese

As usual, I am about a week or more behind in updating the blog. I apologize but life before and after an event is always too busy to get everything done. First you are running around trying to get everything ready for the race while maintaining training. Never mind normal working and family life.

Ironman 70.3 Switzerland was a success. The basic result was 12th place overall and 3rd fastest bike. And what a sweet course! I have always loved Switzerland ever since I raced there during my cycling days. Its one of the most naturally beautiful places I have ever seen. Plus the culture there is much to my liking. People are friendly but also give you space and privacy.

This trip was particularly fun because my wife and daughter were able to accompany me, which I always really enjoy. They got to spend some time in Zurich while I was preparing for the race. Then after the race we went for a car trip through the mountains for a day. Amazing place!

The swim was better than Austria and left me in contact with some of the major players. Of course I can and should be swimming faster, but everything comes when it is ready.

The bike course was made more me. Many steep climbs with very little flat sections. I was definately most comfortable going uphill and perhaps I could have even pushed harder on the uphills but then I would have lost the help of my group on the downhills and flats. Maybe next year I try to go all out on the uphills to see what happens.

My run time was something like 1:22 which is not so amazing by its self, but considering the tough bike before, and the fact the running course had a big set of stairs to run up! ... its not so bad. Actually the fastest guy ran 1:16 which is pretty slow for the fastest time. He (Massimo Cigana) was with me on the bike the whole day and ended up 5th overall, which shows if I can improve my run then I can really move up in the overall. And I am confident I have not even come close to maximizing my potential in the run.

Overall, I am very please with the result, especially because it earned me a spot to Ironman 70.3 World Championships again. Last year was a little dissappointing at worlds, so I am happy to get another chance to prove myself on the highest level.

Its been so long since my last post I will have to write a 2nd one right now to update how things have gone since Switzerland.