Pre season 2016

The year started off with many cross countries, racing the local league race at Shouldham Warren and then also racing larger national races such as Intercounties and Nationals. I wanted to get more cross countries in this year, as last year I didn’t do as many and I felt it set me back a bit at the beginning of the season. Cross country really helps develop strength and some speed getting ready for the triathlon season. I also went away on a camp with East Midlands academy to Fuerteventura. This was a great 10 days away with some really solid training; we got to do a few sea swims so this was useful in the lead up to Quateira (first triathlon and ETU Junior cup race of the year). Just before we broke up for half term I found out I had received a grant from the local council which is greatly appreciated. It was a great afternoon meeting the other athletes who had received the full grant and having photographs taken for the local newspaper.

This was also the first year I’ve ever attended the Tri expo, held in Manchester. I went along and got to visit a few of my sponsors who were at the show, including Zone3, H2pro Precision Hydration and also Swimzi. It was lovely to finally be able to put faces to names and help out on some of the stalls there.

Next up was the ETS camp to Italy, where we trained with the Italians for a few days and then on our own in the lead up to Quarteira. I always really enjoy training with the Italians as it gives everyone things to learn and I think it’s fair to say everyone benefits from these types of camps, whether it is culture differences or the way they train. Before we flew out to Portugal, we got an evening in Rome to sight see and enjoy ourselves. It was probably the highlight of the camp for me as everything was so beautiful and it almost felt as if it wasn’t even real, as if it was just a movie set or something like that, plus the ice cream was AMAZING.

Once we got to Quateira we did a bike and swim course familiarization. There was an unfortunate event during this where GBR team mates Livvy Mathias and Bronwen Owen came off down a hill due to some slippy white lines, which led to Livvy being unable to race. Even though she was gutted she couldn’t race, she put on smile and helped everyone else in the little jobs needing to be done, and she became the group: Hair dresser, Physio, Wetsuit helper and bag holder. Without her there I think it’s fair to say I’d have been a lot more stressed out, so she deserves a massive thank you.

I had a decent swim, making front bike group despite a slightly poor start. The sea was so wavy it made sighting and breathing quite a struggle for everyone. Especially entering and exiting the water was made a lot harder by the crashing waves. The bike felt very hard work, especially the first lap. There was said to be 18 girls came off on the first lap of the bike (exactly where Livvy and Bronwen had come off the previous day), so the decision was made to cut that part of the course off. I was happy with my bike, swim and transitions, but then I felt as if I had nothing to give on the run. This is just the first race of a hopefully long season, so I’m not disappointed and I’m now looking forward to my next races and excited to see what the rest of the season has to hold. Also a massive well done to everyone else that raced in Portugal, with GBR getting 3/6 junior podiums.

I was chuffed to find my new Zone 3 Vanquish wetsuit waiting for me as I arrived home. I can't thank zone 3 enough and I'm excited to try it out soon. Also another massive thanks to H2pro precision hydration for helping me stay hydrated throughout, swimzi for the support and also Carl Goose Sports Massage for helping me remain in one piece.