Training Log Archive: hilarity

I don't understand how the marathon crew puts people into 'divisions' but I ended up in division 3 out of 4, with Raf in 4. The order the divisions started was: 4, 2, 1, 3. On the start line I looked around at the rest of my grid and it was all MEN and all the fast ones too. Needless to say within 1km I really couldn't see anyone else and I sort of forgot I was in a race.

After 5km I realised I had picked up a shrubbery with my rudder and had to stop and paddle backwards, giving an old guy in a DR boat time to catch me. For the next 5km he hung on my wash, and occasionally tried to get past me and sneak inside on corners. I was having none of this rudeness so I would move over and smash him into a tree. To his credit he never once complained about this treatment and I got a grin out of hearing the crashing of branches and snapping of twigs.

I thought I had lost him at about 12km and lost concentration and ended up in la-la land again and then there he was!! For the honour of the V10L I was not going to let him past and we pushed each other hard (with him into a few more trees) and I beat him at the end. Then I found out who he was - John Sims! And he's over 70 and I barely held him off.

Don't like flatwater racing and really don't like the marathon system of divisions!!

C • Start order? 2

Today marks the end of my three months of training hard and the muscles have come back well, except for bench press where my max is 8 reps at 30kg instead of 35kg as it was before. I would try for 35, but the thought of failing and the bar landing on a still-sore sternum just makes me cringe.

Felt strong tonight and it wasn't very windy so I could put some oomph into it and kept up with Jeff and Karl. Had a little swim on the way back for no apparent reason, don't know what happened but all of a sudden I was halfway out with no way of saving it.

Lack of concentration = swims. Jeff laughed and then 100m later he was also counting jellyfish.

This time is 6min faster than previous post-op H Island paddles YAY.

Three chin ups!

C • Three! 3

Shrinking. On a good note I could probably do an extra chin-up or two. :-

I've swapped back to my old paddle which is exactly the same as my new paddle only feels MUCH different, so the first sprint felt wonky but then I sorted myself out.

My goal was not to get beaten by a 515 because I'm not sure Raf would let me live that down. Problem: all the sprints involved turns, by which point I had caught the metal-ruddered first grid so I got to practice braking, followed by chasing boats that I had been in front of.

All good fun and excellent training value!!