Beginning of the 2016 season

2 weeks after Quateira was the Performance Assessment weekend held near Loughborough. This was a weekend filled with workshops, talks and also a heart screening, as well as a swim and then a bike-run time trial. I had a slightly slower swim than last year, but still placed 3rd overall in that. The bike-run start was staggered based on swim times, so I went off third at my respective time. I got onto the bike with Lissie Hood, but after a couple of laps I was fading pretty fast and got dropped. I then found myself in the chase group with 3 other girls, and we worked well together but couldn't close the gap. I felt strong on the run, it's a tough course as it's always very windy with a long steady up hill (into the wind), but I was pleased to come away with 4th.
I had a few weeks until Llanelli triathlon, so back to training and revision for a while. During this time I also went to a theme park for the first time in years with Eddie (my boyfriend who desperately wanted a mention in my blog). This was a good time to relax and take my mind off of training, racing and exams and just be able to chill out, as well as have a bit of an adrenaline rush.
I then competed on a Wednesday evening in a local cycling race held at the Lotus race track, this is a brilliant venue for the local off road cycling races.There was many more women than last year so this made for a better race. I felt strong even in the earlier stages of the race and kept pushing the pace on, in the end it was just me and one other women, Lucy Nell- a fellow triathlete, she just had the sprint over me, but I was still very pleased with 2nd, racing some experienced riders.

This gave me some good confidence going into Llanelli. I was happy with my swim, using my new zone3 vanquish wetsuit, coming out in the top 5, and had a really slick transition, which meant a group of 3 of us managed to get away on the bike. Again it was Lissie and I and this time Livvy Mathias was also there. The pace was extremely high and it was hard work, and this meant Livvy got dropped and ended up working with Meg McDonald who was a few seconds down on us. I was really pleased with my bike as I worked well with Lissie and we got a good time gap going onto the run, it was just here that I struggled greatly, being able to put no real pace in on the run. In the end I finished 7th, winning a sprint finish between the 8th place finisher. The field of girls was extremely strong so I can't be unhappy with the result, but I  was hoping for better, especially after such a good two thirds of the race.
Now I have a while without racing up and down the country and just focusing on exams and school, which will be over in just 6 short weeks time. This week I did my first 5km road race of the year at Wroxham, organised by Norwich Road runners, which is a course that I really enjoy and is fast. I tried to go off at a steady pace so I didn't blow up in the latter stages of the race, but this soon went out of the window when you're with such a large group of runners and being carried along. I could see after 2 miles I was on for a good time and was still feeling reasonably strong, I was just praying I didn't blowup between then and the finish. I finished in a time of 18.21 as 2nd female home, this is the second fastest 5km I've ever ran and it shows I'm moving in the correct direction as it was over 20 seconds faster than last years time over the same course.
Luckily the day after I managed to get in to see Carl Goose for a sports massage to loosen up my legs after a hard 5km run.
Thanks again to all of my support this year from Zone3, H2pro and swimzi, I'm excited for what the season has to offer.

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.

Great end to 2015

In December I had a training camp away in Portugal with the England Talent Squad and also some senior athletes, such as Helen Jenkins and Georgia Taylor-Brown. It was great talking to and being around athletes that have won World titles and Junior World medallists. They gave a lot to the camp and the environment. The travel there went really smooth and fast, helped along by some Justin Bieber tunes to occupy the time. The camp was held at the same location as last year, Rio Maior. The whole set up and area for training out there is exceptional, with a 50m pool and a running track, as well as some great riding routes and running trails so close by.

As a group, we all get on so well, and no matter what we always encourage each other through sessions, which makes the training that little bit easier. Some of my favourite sessions had to be the hill reps on the bike, mainly because of the feeling you got when you got to the top and you'd done it, also the descents were pretty cool. What I also enjoy about ETS camps is the training is quite different to what I normally get up to at home, for example in Norwich we don't do open water specific work in the pool, so when we do things such as swimming on feet I really like it.

Thank you to all of my support throughout 2015, SportsAid, BNY Mellon, H2Pro, Zone3, Swimzi, Carl Goose (sports massage) and vision for sport, not forgetting my coaches in Norwich Alex Pinniger (CONSC),  Jane Clarke (CONAC) and VCN. I hope everyone has a healthy and successful 2016.

swim camp and the start of winter

In October I set off for which would probably be my last swimming camp with City of Norwich Swimming Club to Fuerteventura, as hopefully next year I’ll be at University. I’ve been with the top squad for about 5 years (but I have been with CONSC since I was about 4) and been on 2 previous camps with the club, but there is no doubt that this camp was the best. The training was tough, but so enjoyable in the sun and the lovely 50m pool. My least favourite session had to be the times 5000m for the distance group. I was in so much pain towards the end I could barely spin my arms and mentally it was very tough. Let’s say only a few tears were shed.

On the Wednesday half way through the camp we got an afternoon off for a boat trip. We had the boat just for our squad and set off towards a smaller island, where we put the anchor down and stayed for the rest of the afternoon. There was loads of small fish right by the boat which we got to swim with, which was really cool. Overall the camp was really good; the swimming was hard work (physically and mentally), land training was always very sweaty and we even got a few spinning sessions in. All the time I was helped out with my hydration with H2pro Precision Hydration, which allowed me to perform well and exceed my expectations throughout the camp.

On my arrival home, I go the lovely welcome present from Swimzi with my Swimzi pack. I have been living in my onesie for the last few days as the temperature has plummeted. Big thank you to Chris and everyone there.

The next weekend I had a cross country at Ryston, Shouldham Warren. There isn’t an Under 20’s category so that meant straight up to senior women. I must admit I did feel quite old, especially seeing the U11 and U9 races, which I used to take part in. I had a 9km course ahead of me and I was feeling pretty strong. I managed to pace it well, not going off too fast and building my way throughout. Normally on the second lap I go backwards with people passing me, but I was doing the over taking this time round, which gave me tonnes of confidence and relief that all my hard work and training is paying off.

With upping my mileage over the last few weeks I thought it was about time to get myself some new trainers, so we popped down to Sport Link at Taverham Garden centre. I got some brilliant Saucony and New balance trainers with the help of Neil Featherby, former international marathon runner and now owner and fitness consultant at Sport Link.

Year 13...

This will be my last year at Hellesdon High school sixth form and I'm currently in the middle of sending off my UCAS and attending open days. It's odd because I really don't feel old enough for University and moving out, although I am quite excited, especially after visits and seeing the different universities and the courses I want to study sounds so interesting. 

In the first weekend of October we had the first ETS weekend with the new squad. The weekend was really good and very educational. I really did learn a lot about many different things, especially nutrition and it was so useful (and quite funny) to do a practical session where we made smoothies. 

On the 14th of October I attended the Broadland awards. I had received an invite through the post to say I had been shortlisted for Sporting Achievement of the year. The event was lovely and thoroughly enjoyable. I was absolutely over the moon to win the award on the night. It was such an inspiring evening listening to many amazing peoples story's and how people in this small area make such a huge impact on so many peoples lives around them.

I'm off to Fuerteventura tomorrow morning for a 12 day training camp with my swimming club and hope to get some really good fitness to help me through the winter and into next season. Luckily I got to have a massage with Carl Goose massage before I go to help me get through the camp in one piece. 

Under-20's Festival

The under 20’s festival was the last race of the British super series. It also doubled up as World Championship qualifiers. I felt good going into the race, well rested and prepared to give it all I had. The race unfolded well. Livvy led out the swim at such a fast pace, but I got on the feet of Lissie and we managed to get a large gap to the next group, with Leah also. Once out of the water, I had a really snappy transition to go out onto the bike 1^st , right next to Livvy. We all got together and worked well, getting into a good formation pretty much straight away. On the second lap, I had a very close call. I’m still not quite sure what happened but all I remember is taking a corner and my bike jolting underneath me, causing it, and myself, to nearly hit the floor. I saved it and then I ended up on my small chain ring. Luckily I was near the back, with just Leah behind me, but we both lost quite a bit of speed and a gap opened up between us and the other 2 girls. Luckily I felt quite good and managed to really work to get back on the back of them. Unfortunately Leah didn’t quite have enough in her legs, after just coming back to racing, to bridge the gap and she dropped off our group. We worked well though for the 7 laps and I felt pretty comfortable, plus we were putting in time to people behind us. Going out onto the run I felt really strong, taking off quickly. It was just me and Lissie together now and it remained like that for the 3 out of 4 laps. Lissie made one surge and I managed to cover it, but once she made another I couldn’t quite hold on and just dropped off. I was still gritting my teeth and working as hard as I could because I knew that if I wanted to be selected for worlds a fast run time would need to be recorded. I finished 2^nd and was really pleased as for one of the first times this season I actually felt like myself whilst running. This also got me a second in the super series overall which I was really pleased with. Unfortunately I didn’t make the Worlds team, but if you’d have asked me at the beginning of the year my targets, I would have thought that Worlds was an unrealistic goal for myself, but after coming so close I was and still am genuinely gutted. I can’t look back at the race though and feel disappointed because remembering how I felt when I crossed the finish line, pure happiness, is really the thing I need to take away from the race. I can’t let not qualifying make me forget how delighted I was about the race. I can use this though; I now know exactly how much I want this and how much I am willing to do. I will use this ambition to fuel myself over the winter months and come back next year more than ready to attack the season head on. 

Thank you to all of my sponsors for helping me thorughout the year and enabling me to achieve all I have: BNY Mellon and SportsAid, Vision for sport, H2pro precision hydration, Zone 3, Carl Goose, Copy IT, Velocity Norwich and Swimzi.

latest events

Last week I went on camp with the East Midlands Academy. I had a really good week training with them at Welbeck college. We got a lot in and it was also great because an Austrian athlete, Leon Pauger, we had met in Hungary came over to train for a few days. Thanks East midlands for inviting me for a fab week of solid training in the build up to the World Champs qualifier race at Mallory park.
On Wednesday the 26th of August I went down to velocity Norwich with my brother to see Howard. He gave my brother an excellent bike fitting and he says he can feel the difference already, with a roughly 15% power increase. He had knee pain after riding his bike on the old set up, but after riding today he says there is next to no pain and he felt a lot more power on the bike. I also got a short fitting, perfecting my saddle height. I feel now I am getting the most power possible from my positioning on the bike.
 A massive thank you to Howard and Velocity. On Friday 28th August we went along to a ride at the Snetterton race track, where you can pay £10, which all goes to East Anglian Children Hospices, and you can cycle the track as many times as you wish between 5.30pm-8.00pm. There were lots of people there and quite a few from VCN also. It was such good fun and thanks to Michael Jenness Photography for taking wonderful pictures of the event. Also a great pic of all the family in our glasses from Vision for Sport. This week was also very exciting because I got the new XK through from Swimzi which is super warm and lovely. I cant wait to use it around races and training.