Sam's Nightmare

Sam keeps sending these pictures to me - clearly he's not having a very nice time, skiing every day with fresh new snow, now beautiful sunshine and amazing vistas. It must be awful!!!! Are we jealous? YES.

Glow Worm Ditty

(From Disco Dave's Mum)

I WISH I WAS A GLOW WORM

A GLOW WORM'S NEVER GLUM

COS HOW CAN YOU BE GRUMPY

WHEN THE SUN SHINES OUT YOUR BUM.

Selection of Photos from Ironman Malaysia

Mum and Dad, Sid and Seb had huge fun although I think the whole thing tired them out no end.



Our trusted man Tey with camera in hand and at the ready - Bike and shoe all raring to go.



Gosh the briefing was boring - sitting in shock at the lack of action on the case of beer I bought - I think Sam and Ivie were the only partakers. Cheapest party I ever had - almost ran out of 100+ (isotonic drink) though. Not sure I belong with these "sporto" types.



Sam proving that at least one can of beer was consumed - Shilpa looking angelic as usual.



Sid and Seb looking gorgeous as always.

THANK YOU TEY

Hi Tey,

I just wanted to say a huge thank you for the photos that you took at Ironman Langkawi and posted on your site. You do an amazing job and ask for no recompense. I for one would like to do something to repay you not only for this event but just about every event we do, but how?


You’re amazing. If there is anything that I can do for you then please let me know. If I can I will.

I’m sure everyone else that competes in Malaysia feel the same way. (Let Tey know that his efforts are appreciated by leaving a comments below or go to his site Tey's Site and do likewise there - we owe this guy a huge debt of gratitude).

Great job Tey – thank you so much.

Simon

Ironman Malaysia 2010 - 27th February 2010 (LATEST UPDATE)

**STOP PRESS AGAIN**According to the organisers and Sofian the race WILL now be held in LANGKAWI next year - early bird registration to be available soon.

All sounds promising but then early forecasts of a light sprinkling of snow this year were somewhat exaggerated.

Be careful - Latest Scam

Simon says: - I recently received this email from my buddy JJ. He is a pretty clued up guy and for him to fall for this is nothing short of shocking. It's scary to know that this stuff really goes on. Please read what he has to say as being forewarned is forearmed as they say.

"Hi, I must be getting old. I thought I was quite "streetwise", but there's no fool like an old fool as they say.

Over the last month I became a victim of a clever 'Eastern European' scam whilst out shopping. I simply dropped into Sainsbury's at Clifton Down for a bit of lunchtime shopping and it turned out to be quite traumatic. Don't be naive enough to think it couldn't happen to you or your friends.Here's how the scam works:

Two seriously good-looking voluptuous 20-21-year-old girls come over to your car as you are packing your shopping into the boot. They both start cleaning your windscreen. Their large firm young breasts are almost falling out of their skimpy T-shirts. It's impossible not to look especially with all the snow we have been having. When you thank them and offer them a tip, they'll say 'No' and instead ask you for a lift to another store, in my case, Waitrose in Salisbury. You agree and they both get in the back seat.

On the way, they start undressing and both get completely naked. Then, when you pull over to remonstrate, one of them climbs over into the front seat and starts crawling all over your lap, kissing you, touching you intimately and thrusting her boobs in your face, while the other one steals your wallet! I was unfortunate enough to have my wallet stolen on January 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, 17th, 20th, and 29th. Also on February 1st, twice on the 4th, three times yesterday in Southampton and very likely again at the weekend. So Be Warned!

P.S. Tesco have wallets on sale for £1.99 each, but Lidl's are £1.75 and look better."

Ironman Malaysia 2010 - 27th February 2010 (UPDATE)

I just looked on the IronmanLive.com website and saw that next years race appears to be going ahead despite rumours to the contrary - best start training then I guess!!

Click http://ironman.com/events/ironman

**STOP PRESS**
Rumour control has recently announced that Ironman Malaysia 2010 will probably NOT be in Langkawi!!!!! Only time will tell how much truth there is in this but all interesting stuff ay!!!

Goals - Fantasy, Dream and Real

(Photo courtesy of Karoline & Steve - check out the T-Shirt, now that's a race goal I don't want to repeat)

It's always essential to set yourself some goals before Ironman - lots of goals, some easy, some hard and some downright impossible today but they are what you aspire towards for the future - This is my list, I had a great race so I achieved many of them. Quite honestly if I'd only achieved one of them then the day would have been a huge success.

Check out my Fantasy goals - these will be my dream goals for future races. I've got a big imagination (and a big ego) so there will be new Fantasy Goals too.

Fantasy Goals - would have been nice but absolutely didn't expect to achieve them
1. Ironman Swim Personal Best (i.e. wetsuit or none wetsuit) - Failed
2. Sub 5 Hour Bike Time - Failed (but almost made it)
3. Ironman Run [Marathon] Personal Best (i.e. including standalone marathons = less than 3hr53min) - Failed
4. Sub 3hr30min Marathon - Failed
5. Qualify for Hawaii - Failed but now I believe for the first time ever that I can achieve this in the next couple of years

Dream Goals - Realistically possible if I had the perfect day
1. Ironman Bike Personal Best - Achieved
2. Sub 5:15 Bike - Achieved (I was well chuffed with this especially after I saw how hilly the course was)
3. Ironman Run Personal Best - Achieved
4. Ironman Personal Best - Achieved

Real Goals - Should achieve if I'm still moving forward in this sport
1. Langkawi Swim Personal Best - Achieved
2. Langkawi Bike Personal Best - Achieved
3. Langkawi Run Personal Best - Achieved
4. Langkawi Ironman Personal Best - Achieved
5. Finish not only in daylight but in sunshine - Achieved (This I thought might be tough since they started us half an hour later than usual).
6. Run over the line with my boys - Achieved
7. Finish with a smile, and sit and chat so that my Mum and Dad didn't get scared like they did after Ironman Switzerland (I think they thought I was going to die - I felt like I was going to die) - Achieved

Started Training Again Today

I started training again today - easy 1k swim at home - felt great - off to a spin class now - will take it easy though but loving my training and no post Ironman blues at the moment. I just feel incredibly optimistic about life, the world, everything. Life is Good!

Ironman Malaysia - My Race (updated with photos)

(Photos courtesy of Shilpa and Ivie - check out many more great photos on her blog Squirrel's Site)

Hopefully the shortish version: -

PRE-RACE
A good night's sleep (very important) but not as much as I'd have liked but better than I usually get - woke up at 4:30 and had my first coffee in two weeks. Usual multiple sit downs, followed by multiple more coffees and an energy bar. Off to the start, numbering, sorting bike out etc... ready to go for a warm up but no Shilpa or family anywhere to be seen - never mind, Ivie kindly took my bag and pump and I hit the water with about 15 minutes to go.



SWIM
A few drills, particularly sculling which I find very helpful to get the "feel" of the water before a race. Splashed around for a while and then edged up to the start line on the left hand side.

Today I was going to "race" an Ironman not just "do" one but my swim is weak so there's no point being in the thick of it but on the line to the left seemed a good compromise. The gun went and we were off. Not much else to say really, I was swimming well (for me) and reasonably straight, drafted a little when I could and got to the turnaround in 38 minutes (seemed like forever). I'd swam the day before at about the time I knew I'd finish and gauged the current so I knew that heading back was going with the current would be faster.

Eventually got back in what seemed like an age (swimming is sooooooo boring) with some tosser drafting me but really heavily hitting me every stroke. In the end I just stopped and let him swim into me - there's a certain etiquette that should be observed when drafting - if you're going to take a free tow no problem, indeed touching the guys feet can't be avoided but if you shorten your reach and concentrate you CAN keep this to a minimum and you certainly don't need to be burying the guys ankles every time you throw your arms forward.
SWIM TIME 1:13:55 PB for none wetsuit Ironman

T1
Pretty much straight through, all there was in my bag was salt tablets, chap stick (in case of chaffing on the bike) and a gel that I ate as I ran to the bike. I downed a bottle of water from the drink table and then saw Dad, then further down Mum and as I got to the exit of the bike there was Shilpa and Seb and Sid. Awesome! a big boost. Now on to the real race.
T1 TIME 2:36

BIKE
I knew I was in great shape and very focused and I knew this was going to be a PB before I even started - it wasn't part of the plan but I just felt that good. I was cruising along at a fair pace (no idea what speed I NEVER look at speed in any race, this is inconsequential, Heart Rate and Cadence are king, if these are right and you are well trained and not ill then the speed is a natural result - many a race has been spoilt by people thinking they need to go just that little bit faster and then blowing up). Heart rate was a little high but this was to be expected after the swim and with the adrenaline at the start of the bike. The key is not to ignore it but to gently bring it down while keeping the the cadence at the prescribed rate.

I had passed a great number of bikes on my way around the first loop but this was the one I'd been waiting for - RANDY - he must have had an awesome swim (he had - 1:03, Wow great job dude) we said hi and I was off. Heart rate was around 130 now and cadence mid 90's so all was good.

The wind started picking up and my disc wheel really started to pay dividends - I felt like I was being blown along, the laps just went by and I kept overtaking people. As I was climbing the steep hill for the second time I heard a load of screaming coming from a car, it was Seb and Sid, Mum, Dad and Shilpa. Wicked, what a mental boost - I was still feeling very good and to have these guys here was just unbelievable (unfair for my opponents quite frankly).

The hills were a mere inconvenience, in fact good excuses to stretch my back and stand on the pedals. On the last lap as I went past some guy, he made a comment about my bike/disc wheel not being very good for these hills?????!!!!! Was the guy for real? Was he being ironic or sarcastic? I actually think he was trying to be sympathetic but the fact that I was going about 30% faster than he was seemed to have been lost on him.

I got passed by just three riders on the bike and they were the top three Pros (they started 15 minutes before us). The third pro who was Reinaldo Colucci came by and started feeling his hamstring, after that he was never more than 300 metres ahead off me and I followed him into T2 where he pulled out clearly injured.
BIKE TIME 5:03:22 - PB (35.1kph) and beyond my greatest expectations considering the hilly, hot and windy course

T2
Decided to make this one count, i.e. no mistakes, no rushing. Drank a bottle of water, put socks on, runners, a bit more sun block, visor, Vaseline. I then went out and to the loo for a pee that an elephant would have been proud of, now that's a first for Ironman Malaysia. Then I realised that despite my carefulness I'd left my heart rate monitor on - I never run with this so it was back to the tent, find my bag and put it away. Job done and off we go.
T2 TIME 6:02 - 4 minutes too long but hey we'll fix that next time

RUN
For those that know my Ironman running plan you'll know that it's based on the DENIAL strategy i.e. don't think about it until it hits you in the face and then just hope. Of course that never works but at least it gets you to the start line in the first place. Today was different however, I spent the swim and the bike eager for the run, positively looking forward to it. In training my long runs were getting faster and faster and easier and easier. So I was very confident that today was going to go well. To top it all the weather didn't seem quite so hot as the 8 previous races I've done here (heat is my nemesis).

I started off at a very nice pace and hit the first turnaround at 5k feeling good. This continued until probably about 15k when I started contemplating the enormity of what I still had left - tch tch, those negative thoughts! I held it together for the first 21k but then the walk/run strategy had to be quickly uploaded and brought online.

Shilpa was at the special needs station on every lap with cold 100+ which helped physically and mentally more than I can express. Dad was there too, while Mum was looking after the exhausted boys at the hotel. An Ironman with your family and friends there is so much more fun and fulfilling.

The rest is a bit of a blur, I was in my own little world of pain and anguish but still enjoying myself and still focusing - sadly this meant that I didn't acknowledge as much of the support, encouragement and cheers that I got from my fellow competitors and spectators as I usually try to do - all such good friends - today though I had my "race face" on as someone put it. At least I got to say something Dave on my last lap - you kept encouraging me but until then I never got the chance to reciprocate.

Amazingly I didn't look at my watch much throughout the run, I knew I wasn't going to qualify by quite some distance and I knew that I'd have a PB so I was happy with that, the rest of the time I just moved forward as fast as I could. Even though it was a half an our later start than usual the sun was still high in the sky and I was on the way to the finish line. Beautiful!!!!!

First I saw Mum and Dad standing separately along the finishing shute to ensure that I saw at least one of them. But where were Shilpa, Seb and Sid?????? Oh my goodness I can't finish without them. I slowed right down in the hope of spotting them. Then they were there, right on the finish line LITERALLY. I stopped and called Sid and Seb over, I just had to run over the line with them - it was GLORIOUS, words cannot adequately describe the feeling of fulfilment and happiness - Life is good. When's the next one?
RUN TIME 4:17:51 - Ironman PB - I've done standalone marathons slower than that!

OVERALL TIME 10:43:44 PB for any Ironman and over 1hr23mins faster than my previous best Langkawi.

A final thanks to all my family, friends, training buddies, fellow competitors and all you guys who I've never met before but clapped and cheered on the side of the road for us all. IT WAS MAGICAL.

I'm Back (updated with photos)

(Photos courtesy of ainiza.multiply.com)

In fact I got back on Sunday night and was in the office Monday morning - not bad ay? I had promised my business partner that a "no show" would mean that I stayed an extra night because I qualified for Hawaii - ho ho! Clearly that didn't happen but I managed to achieve most of my goals - the most notable one being an Ironman personal best of 10:43:44 and in the hills, heat and wind of Langkawi - quite chuffed!



My Mum and Dad were over from England to support me, Shilpa and the boys came too of course and they were all awesome. We stayed in the Westin as a bit of a treat and they even upgraded us to the second best suite in the hotel - nice!

My buddy Henry Tan said before the race that if I came in the top 100 (I've never come close to the top hundred before) that he'd buy me a nice bottle of scotch - I was 75th (including the 40 pros) so again pretty pleased with that and Henry delivered a bottle of Chivas Regal to my house last night - thanks Henry - more importantly he said he'd train and do the race next year!!!

Just about everyone in the TTH group had a good race and amazingly the weather was relatively cool reaching only 37 degrees Celsius during the bike according to my bike computer.

So all in all a great race and a great weekend shared with lots of wonderful friends and my family - what more could you ask for?

I read Sofian's blog this morning and I liked the way he'd done a few "shout outs" to/for people so forgive me for doing the same and forgive me if your name should be here - as I replay the weekend in my mind I'll add to the list and add photos later, this is a work in progress.

So a BIG shout out and thank you to: -

Shilpa for being supportive and understanding of my training (most of the time) and for your amazing race day support, she was there every time I needed that extra bit of encouragement or motivating word. She organised herself, Mum, Dad, Sid and Seb to be in strategic places at the transition zones, on the run and at the finish so that I saw all of them at all these crucial spots - not to mention kept tracking me down on the bike in the car - very very motivating.

Sid and Seb for just being so gorgeous in every sense of the word, your persona's just outshine everything else, your unconditional love just brings me to tears, I could never have imagined ever being so lucky, I love you so much it hurts.

Mum and Dad for coming all the way to Malaysia knowing that I'd be out training or at work much of the time and then in Langkawi standing out in the hot sun to get a mere glimpse of me as I cycled or ran past only then to have to wait another hour before repeating the process. Mum also looked after Seb and Sid back at the hotel when they needed a rest which resulted in changing at least one pooy nappy - something I bet she didn't expect to be doing again.

Ivie - who recently became Mrs Randy Tan, she's our team photographer, baker and general support crew. Just like Randy, always positive, always cheerful - thanks for all the support.

Tey - This guy gets everywhere with his camera (not to mention having just done the HK marathon himself) - Looking forward to seeing the photos Tey. Thanks so much for all the pictures you take of all of us at so many events - you really are one of our greatest support team - THANKS FROM ALL OF US.

Julie and Hayley - for their encouragement and support whether that be on Sunday morning long runs, at races and by SMS. Good luck to you Hayley in the London Marathon and Julie too when she gives birth later this year.

Sofian Ismail for being an inspiration to us all, a Malaysian legend in triathlon, always out there for hours after the pros have had their shower, dinner etc. but always with a smile on his face, never grumpy, always with a positive word - As we passed each other on the run I called out to him "keep going Sofian, YOU INSPIRE US ALL" - and he really does. if any budding triathlete needs to find a role model then there's no need to look to the Pros - Sofian's the man. I always get a big lift when I see him on the course.

Dr. Tan, another ICONIC character in Malaysian Ironman, he struggles to finish in the cut off time most years but you'll never see a more smiley, happy man in the middle of a sea of misery. This year he achieved 16:58 - "dead last place" his SMS read - no Dr. Tan, your forgetting the MANY MANY starters that didn't complete the course who you beat - and don't get me started on the couch potatoes that didn't even start training let alone the race. Dr. Tan you are an IRONMAN YET AGAIN - he's also off to do the Gobi Challenge later this year - another desert ultra-marathon like Marathon Des Sables - at least I was sensible enough to stop at that - Dr. Tan is certifiably BONKERS.

Everyone at the IM Cyclist van and Edwin of course - These guys were just awesome, full of cheers and support - thanks guys you made that steep bridge easier to get over every lap. Thanks Melody and Adele especially, they cheered me every time I went past, sorry I didn't acknowledge it after the first couple of times but I was in a little world of pain and just trying to keep it together.

TTH Disco Dave 13:20:21 - I just love training with you - always a smile, always great conversation, fun, jokes, banter - great addition to the group and now you've broken your Ironman virginity - well done.

TTH Kona Carmen 12:02:09 - She got to Hawaii last year (and beat me) but kindly let me get away this year. No so lucky were Fiona and Wendy who Carmen resolutely wound them in and finished as first Malaysian woman again. Congratulations - the dream lives on.

TTH Emma Bishop 10:55:43 - Everyone put money on her beating me (including me) but her bravado got the better of her the day before the race and rather than succumbing to the pressure I managed to keep her at arms length to the finish. Emma has spent the last year aiming for Hawaii and would have made it by over an hour had the organisers not changed the rules at the 11th hour which moved her into the next age-category where she was pipped to the lone spot by just 10 minutes. Emma was philosophical about it and I have no doubt that another Ironman later this year will reward her with a spot to the Big Island.

TTH Denis Oakley 14:05:11 - Denis disappeared from the radar in the month of February and I only saw him on the plane home. However, despite tremendous challenges at work he too broke his Ironman virginity and even called it easy - Shame on you Denis, try harder next time, or pretend it hurt to make the rest of us feel better.

TTH Sam Pritchard DNF - Never mind Sam, a good swim was followed by a sub 5:30 bike but with food poisoning - now that is awesome. Sam eventually succumbed on the run but having suffered food poisoning once myself in this race I can tell you there's no where to hide and you can't fake it on this killer course. If you're not 100% then it will eat you up and spit you out.

TTH Lingerie Lee aka KK 14:46:05 - Always a cheerful chap, great guy to train with, holiday with and race with although his choice of underwear on the outside is becoming a little distracting.

TTH Chris Sexy Lady 14:32:47 - Her name speaks for itself, Shilpa said that half dead Ironman who were almost crawling on their hands and knees sprang up, chests out and started sprinting when they saw Chris approaching - she clearly exudes that sort of inspiration, the women athletes just turned green with envy in comparison. Chris looked a million dollars, as usual and had a smile, a wave and a word of encouragement every lap of the run - she should make a guest appearance in every Ironman to rejuvenate everyone I reckon.

TTH Randy 13:15:40 - Now Randy is another of those training partners that you just love to have around, always smiling, only positive words to say, laughing, joking - just Mr Cheerful, but my goodness come race day what a change. I asked him to let me beat him out of the water as he is a great swimmer. Not only did he not do that but did a 1:03 and beat me on to the bike by a good 10 minutes - very unsporting. It took me over 50k to track him down. But later that day... Randy was looking grey, no smile, no jokes and no cheerfulness, just a grimace of pain and dogged determination to finish. I later found out that I hadn't managed to upset him but rather he had suffered some sort of back trauma on the bike and had spent the last 12 hours of the race in excruciating pain. Good on you Randy, that is the Ironman spirit - just keep going.

TTH Gadget Girl Bee 12:41:18 - Bee has been steadily improving throughout the last couple of years and this clearly showed in Langkawi, she looked the very definition of an Ironman triathlete, total confidence and focus - in the zone! Nice one Bee I can see that Carmen will be having more competition for the title next year.

TTH Meng 13:41:04 - Seems like I train with a cheerful bung of guys and girls but Meng takes the biscuit, he permanently has the biggest smile you've ever seen on a human being. This guy is the personification of happiness even when he's hurting. I caught him on a hill just before I finish my last loop on the bike and guess what - he was smiling! This year he's not had the chance to do as much training as he'd like but still managed a great time.

TTH Don Khor 11:33:51 - Don entered at the last minute and although his running was tip top his cycling training was a few thousand k short of what was required. When he got gouing on the run though he had a smile from ear to ear and was sprinting around the course.

TTH Bernard 14:38:38 - he struggled on the swim but kept it all together to the finish. Nice one!

TTH Ngae 15:14:35 - Often seen running marathons barefoot and Ironman Malaysia was no different, ass cheerful as ever, telling whoever would listen that he was taking it easy Ngae ran round the run course with an injured hip and shoes in hand - good job dude. Incidentally, he was guilty of putting a bet on with me for a 10k race head to head with me AND Ironman Malaysia, albeit with a 45 minute handicap advantage. He lost the 10k race and after some frantic SMS's and "legal" input he delivered the first case of beer - however, he was heard trying to wheedle out of the second case for the Ironman - we'll see - beer is cheap in Langkawi too, I hope he bought a case there.

TTH Aaron and Neil (They were draft marshalls) - Thankfully I didn't see them during the race nor did they need to worry about me I hasten to add - but they have been awesome training partners and will be doing the Singapore 70.3 in 3 weeks - good luck guys. Just a note to reflect upon too, they were there as race officials, giving their time to do a thankless job of draft busting - can you believe that the organisers made them pay for their own flights to Langkawi???!!!!! Does anyone have any idea how much sponsorship the organisers get from the government???? I do and let me tell you it runs into millions - volunteering is one thing but it's quite disgraceful that they have to pay to fly there - just my thoughts - doesn't reflect well on the organisers but it just goes to show what stand up guys Aaron and Neil are - good on you and thank you guys.

Iwata Takatoshi 15:31:09 - As last year my great rival and friend Iwata-san gave up his race day to pair up with a blind Ironman for the swim before handing over to the guys tandem bike partner. Iwata then finished the race himself but not before crashing on a sandy bit of road - he still finished with injuries all over his body and a very badly damaged shoulder - that's why they call them IRONMAN - great respect as usual Iwata-san.

On another note regarding the organisation - I do owe the organisers half an apology, I said in a previous post that the bike course was going to be a disaster and that some people would ride too many loops and other too few. I was half right, some people did and it was a bit of a silly course but the signage was great (except exiting the last lap was left to local knowledge or plain luck), marshals and police were perfect and somehow I blew my previous bike time away with a 5:03 feeling totally fresh and ready for a marathon - strange!!

There are more to add and photos of course but just no time yet...more later