Slovenia in a nutshell

Training through the winter time is always difficult, especially if you have no definite plan ahead and in what direction...so winter 2010 had its ups and its downs…

UPS:
-winning a few and finishing 2nd in the TIAVIGO Duathlon Series
- being happily married for few months
- having a good training session here and there
- working in a great practice

DOWNS:
> continuous niggles
> on and off training due to illness
> no plan = no direction or outcome


So by the end of winter I was just praying for a solid block of training without niggles and sniffles… and whola, my prayers were answered... a training camp in Slovenia for 6 weeks was being held for some of the top TSA triathletes leading up to the World Triathlon Champs in Budapest. I was not invited at first, as I had missed SA Champs and had not been selected to go to Budapest, but by the misfortune of another injured athlete, I went to the camp as a helping hand/manager/athlete and got the opportunity to train with and participate in some selected races aswell.PERFECT!

And so the planning started, once again I had minimal time to plan an event others had been planning and anticipating for months, but the challenge was on and within days almost everything was planned, tickets, accommodation, races DONE. I must add, if it wasn’t for the backing and support of Dreyer, who still got the brunt end of the deal (6 weeks alone, in winter, as a newly wed OUCH!) it would not have happened. So after 2 weeks of planning I was off to meet the other triathletes in Slovenia.

NB!! Thank you INOV-8, my exciting new sponser for your support,the shoes and kit were the talk of the town!!

But more of INOV-8 in my next few posts.....

(turn head slowly to left to view pic)

The trip there: Dubai(flight delay)-->run my ass off& almost missed connecting flight-->Venice, no bike bags-->frustration-->long bus trip to Slovenia-->no cycling for a week-->frustration-->bikes nowhere to be found-->irritation-->bikes in Dubai?Italy?who knows…then I decided drastic times calls for drastic measures:

(Everyone had quit a good laugh as I was riding with the rest of the SA team on their super fast racing bikes!!)

The 6 weeks went by very quickly, (although Dreyer would report differently :)),we had a good training schedule and I had the opportunity to train under the guidance of Lindsey Parry and Emma Swanswick, and in 6 weeks time I was feeling stronger and faster than in a long time. I felt for the first time what it was like to be a PRO athlete, and it was great. Train, eat, sleep, train, eat, and sleep. But what made it even better was that I could share the experience with a bunch of other like minded athletes, and thats always a bonus!

The training facilities in SLO were great, enough of everything, hills, flats, scenic routes, amazing trails to run on, a brand new tartan track,50m heated pool and the best of all, the cleanest, clearest most gorgeous lakes to do our open water swim training in!

While the other triathletes were dashing off to different European Cups every weekend I decided to stick to the dirt and race at the last two European Xterra’s, Xterra Germany and Switzerland. But that’s a whole story on its own…

Amazing Slovenian choc filled pancakes on a rainy day! mmmm

The trip came to an end with the group going to World tri champs in Hungary and myself taking a 24h trip in the opposite direction to Switzerland. I had mixed feelings as it all came to and end and made another UPS and DOWNS list to put it all in perspective:

UPS:
ü Great training block
ü Great training facilities
ü Great training partners
ü Amazing race experience gained
ü Life experience gained

DOWNS:
§ Leaving Dreyer behind
§ A bit of bike damage due to travel
§ Leaving Dreyer behind for so long
§ Bit of credit card dept
§ Leaving Dreyer behind for so long in the crappy winter time

More on my Xterra experiences next time!