The participation in Ironman Western Australia ended a very ordinary period for me as a full time, competitive triathlete. It was a tremendous relief knowing that a month out, I was injury free and a definite starter. A correct diagnosis of my problem as iliopsoas bursitis/internally clicking hip, finally resulted in a successful rehabilitation campaign. The generous assistance and expertise of Kieran Bell from BIOSYMM certainly was the catalyst to the recovery.

I had 3 months to prepare for Busselton and I couldn’t have done it without the assistance of my athletes. I hosted many group sessions in the lead up to the race, and it was the enthusiasm and spirit of these occasions that made the sometimes onerous training bearable, and, dare I say it, enjoyable.

As always, when in Busselton I stay at the Mac Shack, courtesy of Mumbles and Sports Fever. Unfortunately, on this occasion, there was need for emergency evacuation of the premises on the first night of our stay.

Mumbles’ two children had fallen ill on the way down with gastro and none of the competing fraternity in the Shack wanted to risk contracting the bug prior to the race. An emergency call was made and temporary digs organised for a couple of nights.

It must have been a nightmare for Cara, Mumbles wife, as she was parked on the side of the road in the dark and the middle of nowhere with a car full of vomit and two bleating little rug rats. Even worse, I would say, when the truckie with no teeth stopped to help!

Mumbles and GMac were sent to save the day. Raija and I feverishly packed our belongings – after waiting this long to race, every detail was being addressed to make sure it actually happened.

Apart from this very minor inconvenience, the lead up to the race went pretty much to plan, aside from having to abandon one of our final training sessions due to precipitation. I follow a rule that states: “don’t, under any circumstances, ride your bike in the rain, especially when it is 2 days out from an Ironman and you don’t really need to be out there anyway”. I hope this decision didn’t contribute to my 9 minute deficit off the bike.

Generally I don’t get too anxious in the lead up to a race, and despite not having raced since August of 2006, this occasion was no different. I didn’t experience any sleepless nights in the last fortnight at all.

Waking on race morning is usually a different story though.

Even one day out from the race the enormity of the task at hand can be somewhat diluted. However, when you wake on race morning there is no escaping the reality of the situation. I know at some point during the day I am going to be under significant physical distress, and I am not looking forward to it.

I was quietly determined on race morning. I had paid my money and was eager to get some return for investment. The big carrot was early qualification for Hawaii, which would mean a US campaign focussed on Half Ironmans. The other was the hope of a decent prize cheque at the finish (This is, of course, relative. As far as I am concerned, none of the prize cheques are decent for what you have to put yourself through to earn them).

I probably wasn’t expecting to win, that was going to be a huge task considering I hadn’t raced for so long and I couldn’t use my altitude tent for this preparation, but I was quietly considering a podium finish - not out of the realms of possibility considering my training form.

I completed the usual race morning procedure and walked to the water to have a warm up. I entered the water east of the jetty to swim to the start line and as I walked in the shallows I was certain a crab nipped me on the foot. Although not really a conspiracy theorist myself, the thought did cross my mind that the crab had been planted there for that exact purpose. Why they didn’t plant a bigger specimen to really get the job done is beyond me.

As the gun went off for the swim start there was the unavoidable argy bargy caused by everyone swimming in different directions in search of the fastest feet.  As it turned out, the fastest feet were too fast, and they swam off into the distance. We all had to be content with the fastest group, and I was pretty happy to realise after 500m that I was swimming comfortably within it.

I wasn’t quite sure where I was after about 300m had been swum – I could’ve been anywhere, but I was thinking the worst at that stage because I was in a large amount of oxygen debt and what felt very much like floundering.

Two hundred metres later, I had settled down, gauged the situation and realised I was where I wanted to be.

I have to say that I was very impressed with my new 2XU V-1 wetsuit. I wouldn’t say it did the swim for me, but I am certain I was better equipped than those that didn’t have the luxury of swimming in it.

On the outward journey, I glanced up and saw Mumbles, Raija and Ratey following me along the jetty and even had the hide to give them a wave – a bit rich you would have to say after chastising Ratey for doing the same thing in the Busso Half when the positions were reversed.

While the swim out to the end of the jetty was relatively “easy”, the return journey was a bit harder. I don’t know whether it was me getting tired, someone picking up the pace, or my bad positioning in the pack on the way home. By the time we reached the last buoy that designated the easterly turn towards the exit point, I was experiencing high physiological stress and was ready to finish the swim then and there.  With such a small distance to go, it was always going to be possible to dig deep to maintain contact with the pack, but as I exited the water, I wasn’t smiling like our mate PJ I can assure you.

A comment was made after the race about the lack of spectators on the jetty following the swim. The swim in Busselton is unique from a spectator perspective and it amazes me that not more people take advantage of the situation.

As I started the cycle leg, I realised I was a lot longer from the tail of the leading pack than I wanted to be so I set out to catch them as quickly as possible. The chase to the lead pack set the precedent for much of the cycle leg. The first two athletes I passed on my way to the lead pack jumped onto my wheel and settled in a lot closer than the required 7 metres.

When I did catch the lead group at about the 15 kilometre mark, I went straight past and into the front position. I am not quite sure what I was thinking at this juncture. Surely the sensible thing to do would have been to reach the tail end of the group, take advantage of the generous stance of the officials on drafting and save some energy - even more so, considering I had pushed a higher wattage than I should have to catch the group.

Instead, I did the exact opposite and went straight to the front and continued to push 15-30 watts higher than planned, in a vain attempt to blow the group away and get some distance for myself. All I achieved was to give the numerous athletes behind a relative rest for 40 kilometres and deplete the energy reserves I would need for the remaining 125km of the cycle leg.

The end of my tenure at the front of the group came at the 55 kilometre mark of the first lap. I had just towed the group into the moderate headwind coming back into town along the newly laid Layman road and decided that enough was enough and sat up. Almost immediately the big South African attacked. A number of athletes were able to follow, but I was under too much physiological stress at the time and had limited reserves in the tank in order to respond. I tried to bridge the gap, but I thought better of burning off any more reserves and resigned myself to a lonely final 120k.

The only other highlight for me during the cycle leg was when Mitch and Chris McDonald came by at the 90km mark. After the previous debacle, I decided to “play the game” and rotated the lead with Mitch for about 30 kilometres before I really blew up. I then had 60km of purgatory left. It wasn’t pretty as I dropped 9 minutes in that 60k alone. Not even my InfiniT electrolyte formula could stop the bleeding – I was pretty happy I had it on board though, after tasting the on course product prior to race day.

When Mitch caught me he asked me why I didn’t just sit on. I think the reply went something like: “because I am an idiot” - I am also a fair racer and believe in reward for effort.

In hindsight, after reading a recent triathlon magazine, I should have been asking a couple of the lads for a fee for towing them on the first lap, because Mitch would have caught them a lot sooner if I hadn’t.

When I got off the bike, my lower back was so sore that I could hobble to the transition tent at best. I was spent and really didn’t want to run. I had a very relaxed transition as a result and emerged to start the run a very sore and sorry sight indeed. Even the ranting of my younger brother could not inspire me at this time. I knew I was in trouble and got to the 400m mark of the run before I had to walk. My back was in spasm and I had to stop, there was no way I could run in that condition.

Many things go through your head at a time like this. Foremost was the desire to quit – I’ll admit it. Then you start thinking about: how you will feel the next day, how you will explain it to your friends, family, sponsors and the acquaintances you have met through the sport, the hours and hours of arduous training you have done to get to the start line, the fact that it is your first race in 15 months and how you wanted to race for so long but couldn’t, the fact that it is a long race and it starts on the run……

It is those thoughts that provide the impetus to persevere and continue when things are not quite going to plan.

After some soul searching, stretching and walking, I was able to commence my run in earnest. I knew my running was competent; it was just a matter of getting those Brooks Racer ST’s rolling.

I started the run in 7^th position and by the 400m mark I was in 9^th after being passed by Stephen Bayliss and Craig McKenzie while nursing my back. At the start of the third lap I had regained 7^th position after running down Stephen and passing Luke Dragstra on the back of an approximate running pace of 4 minutes per kilometre. I felt great for the first two laps, after pulling myself together, and a top 5 finish was still a distinct possibility.

It started to get a bit harder at the start of the third lap, but I was able to maintain a steady pace until hitting a minor wall with 6 kilometres to run. At this stage, I had Chris McDonald in my sights and passed him with 5k to run. He wasn’t going like a winner, and I crept past him at an agonisingly slow rate – it was like two pensioners with Zimmer frames crossing the road. I just hoped he had nothing in the tank, because I was running on empty.

With 4k to run, I was given the info that 5^th place was just up the road. It didn’t seem like “just up the road” as it took about two kilometres to finally sidle up alongside. My fifth place combatant was the German - Uwe Widman. I was desperately hoping he was running on fumes too.

The instant I inched past Uwe into 5^th, Stephen Bayliss, bolted by and I was relegated to 6^th. I really thought that the next time I would see Stephen after passing him earlier would be when I saw him cross the finish line behind me. It was a gutsy effort on his behalf to run me down again and finish 5^th.

Uwe was biding his time and cruising to the finish line at this point because he had the juice to be able to follow Stephen and leave me in his wake too. I know this because after the race on the presentation dais I said “I wasn’t expecting you to go by me again after I passed you” and he replied with “I wasn’t expecting you to catch me”.

With the lads surging ahead of me with two kilometres to run, I had to be content with a 7^th place finish because I had nothing left. My legs were stumps and my quads were protesting vehemently with every pathetically small stride.

I was disappointed at that instant because 5^th looks a lot better than 7^th but I was content also because I knew that I couldn’t have gone any faster on the day.

As far as my goals were concerned, neither was fulfilled. The Hawaii slots rolled down to third and fourth place and my prize money cheque barely covered expenses. However, not all was lost as it won’t hurt to have this race under the belt in order to help fulfil my goals next time.

If I had approached the race a little differently, there is no doubt the result could have been better, but that would have been at the expense of my own sense of fair play. The athletes that were able to save the most energy were in the best position to win. If I had “sat in” I would have probably finished the cycle within reach of a podium position, but that is not the way I chose to race on the day.

It is disappointing that, on a course like this, under certain circumstances there can be limited reward for effort on the bike and, unfortunately, it is has the potential to be the same each time. The next time I do this race I will be more patient and tactically savvy on the bike – the rewards pie is small and I want to make sure I get my fair share of it – doing the “right thing” doesn’t get you anywhere.

I must thank my generous sponsors for their support:

Mumbles and Craig from SPORTS FEVER

Frank and Andrew from POWERCRANKS

Kieran from BIOSYMM

Greg Mackenzie from PHARMACY 777

Ralph and Nev from RYDERS Eyewear

Raj and team from BROOKS

Rick, Jamie and Aidan from 2XU

Michael and Peter from INFINIT nutrition

As the days become shorter and the temperatures start to drop, many cyclists will soon review their progress from the 2007 cycling season and set goals for 2008. In addition, many cyclists will begin cross training to maintain their existing fitness and focus on muscle groups that have been neglected. It is important to note that neglected muscle groups can result in muscle imbalances and asymmetry that have an impact on the cyclist’s performance and comfort on the bike.

The detection of muscle imbalances and correcting them before injury occurs is critical to cycling longevity and performance. Most cyclists develop muscle imbalances due to over use of the hip flexors (mobilizers) and under use of weak gluteus muscles (stabilizers). This type of muscle imbalance can cause the pelvis to tilt upward and extend the lumbar spine causing a lordotic tilt (arched lower back) of the pelvis.

Cyclists should conduct periodic screenings for muscle imbalances and correct the abnormalities of muscle strength and length to prevent musculoskeletal pain and irregular function. Evaluating muscle length is not difficult via standardized tests.  However, evaluating muscle strength can be more challenging. The primary focus on evaluating muscle strength is to be able to isolate the action of individual muscles. The majority of muscle strength evaluation concentrates on testing the mobilizers (hamstrings, adductors, hip flexors and abdominal recti) because they are easier to isolate than stabilizers (transversus abdominis and posterior glutei mediae).  If the cyclist is unfamiliar with muscle imbalance testing they should look for a professional to evaluate them and make sure a protocol is established to assess both the mobilizers and stabilizers.

As discussed earlier, muscle imbalances can cause a lordotic tilt of the pelvis. The tilt of the pelvis can also be more pronounced on one side of the body due to asymmetry where one side of the body is more dominant than the other.

There are many factors to consider when addressing muscle asymmetry.  However, there are two primary factors that cause muscle asymmetry while riding the bike. The first is bike fit and proper rider positioning on the bike.  Muscle asymmetry will become more pronounced if the rider is on the bike incorrectly.  A major factor to determine if the cyclist is on their bike correctly is if he or she is able to engage their core muscles while sitting on the saddle of the bike.  If the cyclist cannot engage their core muscles, there is dysfunctional stabilization and no lumbopelvic stability.  When the cyclist lacks core stability he or she will be pedaling outside their natural alignment and more muscular effort is required to recover to a stable position.  In short, while pedaling long distances the dominant side muscles groups begin to work more than the less dominant side muscle groups, thus causing more muscle asymmetry.

The second factor to consider when addressing muscle asymmetry is the cyclist’s riding habits.  For example, reaching down for a water bottle with the same hand reinforces muscle asymmetry.  Another example is while stopping at an intersection and extending the same leg to the ground while the other leg remains contracted reinforces muscle asymmetry.  A third example is looking back over the same shoulder when checking for traffic reinforces muscle asymmetry.  To test your level of asymmetry do what I call “the one-armed interval.”

To do the “one-armed interval” all you do is ride your bike for 5 to 10 minutes with only one arm on the handle bars at an easy pace.  Then switch arms and ride another 5 to 10 minutes with only the other arm on the handle bars.  If you are right side dominant, you will notice while riding with your right hand on the handle bars and your left hand off the bars, your left glutes (stabilizers) and left side core muscles will be working harder than when you were riding with the left hand on the handle bars.  When your left hand is on the handle bars and you are right side dominant, your glutes and right core muscle groups are not nearly as taxed.

There is no easy answer to eliminating muscle imbalances.  The only way to prevent or eliminate injuries is to learn where you have muscle imbalances and adjusting them with the correct strengthening and flexibility exercises.  Once you understand more about your muscle imbalances begin a daily stretching and strengthening routine.  Doing yoga and/or pilates is a great way to strengthen weak muscles and lengthen tight muscles.