After an incredible few months working in the French sunshine at Les-Stables it was time to get back to some racing, and see whether I'd made any progress or just gained a decent tan.
It was great to be welcomed by some friendly faces from the Les-Stables/Pacesetter team on Friday at Rutlnd water, and even better to sit down for a pre-race dinner and catch up.
Race day started in typical style: early. Crawling out of bed to the sound of my 4am alarm was tough, but once I'd dosed up on coffee I soon felt awake and began my pre-race preparations. Registering on the Friday makes race morning run a lot smoother so when I arrived at the venue I racked my bike and got my transition area set up with plenty or time for a good warm-up. As usual, a feeling of nervous excitement was building rapidly as the 1000 strong transition area filled up quickly and in no time we were called for the briefing and given a 10 minute warning till the first wave was off.
Swim
Lining up on the edge of the water with 200 other athletes I was as ready to race I could have been. I positioned myself with the first line of athletes on the beach. I was hoping to see improvements on my swim time and was hoping to break 20 minutes, but this only added to my nerves - it was hard to forget that the 199 other athletes would be happy to get past me in any way possible, if I didn't have the best start, and I didn't want to ruin my whole race. As the klaxon went off I ran into the water, dove, and began swimming hard. As usual there were arms and legs everywhere! Luckily I stayed out of trouble and after the initial sprint I found myself on the feet of the front group. The group split during the main straight and I was in the wrong place to go with leading guys. As we approached the final turn I put in a burst of speed to get around clear with the hope of bridging the gap to the leaders but couldn't quite get up to them leaving me in 'no-mans land'. Heading to shore I made a few navigational mistakes; putting in so much effort to try and make the front group was having its effect, which was frustrating after having such a good swim. But I needn't have been too harsh on myself; I came out of the water to the sound on 'number 42, James Phillips coming out in 19:30', which I was over the moon with - a new 1500m PB by over 2 minutes!
T1
Wetsuit down and off and at the mount line in no time, but unfortunately one of my elastic bands holding my shoes in place snapped as I was running and as I jumped on, the shoe dug into the ground bringing me to an abrupt stop! I was off soon enough after flipping the shoe around, but it's an area I want to work on before the Europeans.
Bike
The course was constantly undulating with some good climbs and descents. I had no issues throughout the bike and got round comfortably. Being my first major race I found it hard to pace the bike and found myself settling into a too comfortable rhythm which in hindsight was significantly off the effort I should of been putting in during a race. Rolling into T2 I realised my pacing issue as the leaders were well on their way on the run, which left me with a big task to work my way up the field on the run,
T2
Jumped off bike, racked, helmet off, shoes on, and gone.
Run
I went off hard on the run and passed a number of athletes in the first few km's, feeling fresh and light on my feet. As I passed the 4km mark it was my first opportunity to see my position and how far away the leaders were. I counted 4 athletes passing in the opposite direction already on their way back. Unfortunately I'd left too much to do as I settled into a comfortable rhythm making sure I could hold my position and not blow up. A great crowd had developed on at the finishing area and the support was brilliant as I ran down the finishing chute and across the line in 2:02:03, with a 10km PB of 33:30.
I went into the race hoping to see improvements on my swim and run and have come away pleased, my splits showed significant improvements in both areas and good move towards racing with he top athletes. I know I need to work on some intensity on the bike and get back to basics with some transition practice. Unfortunately I just missed out on the podium with a 5th place overall and 4th in AG, but I've learnt a lot from the race and know what I need to work on before the Europeans.
Finally I would like to thank Les-Stables for sorting out my race and making the whole weekend a great experience and Pedal Potential for their continued support.
Next stop Geneva and the European Championships!
