It's not about the race!!

After two days of head scratching I have finally decided that my short Lake Placid race report will be less conventional than those that I have read here before. No one is going to get too excited about my splits, and my top race tips are not going to alter the race strategy of any of Tri-Stars readers. I'm a little over a year in to this sport and there are many more qualified authors out there who can dispense advice ahead of me, backed up by impressive results to add weight to their opinions. That said, some of you pros may have lost sight of the many and varied challenges that face a virgin triathlete, so here goes with my top six triathlon tips, all learned the hard way;

 *   Your wetsuit zip goes at the back

 *   Pump the tyres up and the bike goes faster

 *   If someone overtakes you on a ladies mountain bike don't despair...you can still catch them on the downhill bit...maybe

 *   Two running shoes work better than one

 *   Exiting the bike transition via the entrance is only exciting for a millisecond...then it gets very embarrassing (and painful)

 *   Seeing the age on the back of peoples legs was a rule invented by really old, fit people. Carry a permanent marker and secretly double your age to really depress other athletes

As far as Lake Placid goes, it was a blast. I can actually hold my head high and say I enjoyed almost every moment. Even seeing the winner sprint to the finish line as I got off my bike didn't knock me off my stride. Great people, great town, great race...end of story. However, I do want to briefly say a little bit about my broader experience of the Ironman, because for me it really is not about the race. Again, on this topic I think I am probably reaching out to those people who are new to the sport and not to those veterans amongst you who have an entire wardrobe full of 'finishers' t-shirts and cheaply made medals hanging on the back of a door, but bear with me if you will...

I was enticed (or duped?!) in to doing an Ironman a little over a year ago, partially by my coach but more importantly by the quiet voice inside my head which just wouldn't shut up once it got hold of the ridiculous idea. My first race was in Florida back in October '08, and now with Lake Placid finished I'm two races in to what will probably be a short Ironman career. I have always tried to stay on the right side of fitness, but I would be a liar if I said that I was in great shape when this crazy journey began. I was 36, spent much of my time behind a computer or in an airport waiting lounge, and had hung on to the memory of a sport filled youth and a relatively fit body for far too long. I am never going to win a race...never have, never will (I do dream about the day that everyone apart from me takes a wrong turning, but that probably wouldn't count?). The training and the races have entered almost every part of my life, but what has struck me in the last two weeks is the real effect that Ironman has had on those around me. I had a very loyal team of ten close friends and family travel to Lake Placid with me, and without exception they all seemed profoundly moved by the whole event. I'm not saying that any of them will be lining up on the start line next year, but there is a new sense of optimism and adventure amongst all of us that has taken life in to a new gear. How that materializes itself remains to be seen, but I know there are more adventures around the corner, and the Ironman lit the touch paper.

Ironman is beyond comprehension for most people, and this last race really brought that home to me. Sure, in a town like Lake Placid on race weekend you could be fooled in to thinking that most normal people knock off a 50 mile bike ride before breakfast and then run 15 miles in their lunch hour prior to wrestling a bear before dinner, but the reality is of course very different. Speak to the guy in the deli when you get home and tell him what you did at the weekend and he will look at you like you have just stepped off an alien spaceship. Completing the Ironman has given me an enormous sense of accomplishment, and with my mid-life crisis supposedly looming I feel healthier and happier than I have done in years. I have absolutely no desire to buy a sports car or an electric guitar. My waist is nearly four inches smaller than it was a year ago, and I am discovering muscles in my legs that I never knew existed. I really do feel ten years younger than I am and that is beyond fantastic. Whilst I cannot credit my new hobby with all of this, it has been a major factor and for that I am very grateful. I am wholly addicted to the structure and discipline of training, to my newly improved diet, and to the buzz of race day. I will never become a fanatic - my eyes still glaze over when discussions turn to lactate thresholds and power meters, and I still don't know what all the buttons do on my heart rate monitor. I've never really felt comfortable in spandex and I don't think I ever will, but I do know how to get round the Ironman in one piece, and that's good enough for me, at least for now.

My final tip then would be this, and I think it applies to those at the front of the field as it does to those in the middle or at the back. Grab some of your closest friends and take them along to your next race (bring the guy from the deli as well). If they don't want to join you then just let them soak it all in and enjoy a day out cheering you on. The results might just take you by surprise!