Australian Time Trial Championships, 2006

Perfect Preparation
In early November 2005, I sat down with my coach, John Beasley and talked about my goals for 2006. The Australian time trial was being used to select the Commonwealth Games team, and wanting more than anything to represent Australia, we planned out a 10 week time trial program. The main focus was to build strength and learn to sit at threshold for up to 45 minutes.

Blue Cycling Corporation provided me with a T-12 time trial bike that I trained on every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I went to the VIS gym and lifted heavy weights and with any remaining energy left, I tried to race a local criteriums on Sundays.

With such a hard training schedule, nutrition was essential to keep me backing up during this strength block, and Champion Nutrition provided me with pre, during and post training endurance products to help me replenish and repair damaged muscles.

About 4 weeks before the Nationals, headed to the Australian Institute of Sport for a training camp. I did two 30 minute time trial tests in the laboratory as well as a time trial on the road to see how my training was progressing. My results indicated I was getting stronger which motivated me to keep training hard as I counted down the days until the big race.

Race day
It rained all night and I awoke to overcast skies and drizzle. I rode the windtrainer for one hour before breakfast to wake up the body and legs. As I sat down to breakfast I started feeling squirmish in the stomach. Thinking it was just nerves I forced breakfast down and tried to keep relaxed.

Around 8am, I was hit with chronic diarrhea. Within an hour, I started getting intense stomach cramps. We arrived at the race venue where I met my coach and gave him a report on my health. He reminded me of how much preparation I had done, how strong I was and told me that I would have a great day.

The warm up for a time trial is extremely important. The legs and lungs need to be ready to go flat out from the start line. I warmed up for 40 minutes and was a bit worried about how heavy and lethargic I felt.

The time trial course was 27km of very hilly terrain. The first hill was 100m from the start and up this first climb my gears started jumping about and changing automatically. I couldn’t believe the bad luck I was having. Standing on the podium was my goal, so to finish 16th and more than 5 minutes behind the winner was devastating.

After the race, I went for a ride alone and thought about what had just happened. Weeks of the hardest training I have ever done and nothing to show for it.

Life goes on
Cycling has many high and low moments and 11 January 2006 was a day I want to forget and just move on. On a positive note, I am fit, healthy and ready to plan some new goals for the 2006 season.

Stay tuned as I refocus on my training and do what I love to do – and that’s ride my bike.