An Update from TK Robb 10/2/2011

(Penny Farthings Sponsored Tri Specialist)

Kia Ora!

Can someone please tell me where the days are going?? It's already well into February and yet it feels like the year has barely started. Last weekend I had the first race of the 2010-11 season up in Kinloch, Taupo. This was the fifth event of the Triathlon New Zealand Contact Series events and it doubled as the National Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships. It was also my first race for the 2011 season....finally!

The last 3 months have all been about laying down the foundations for what will be a long and very challenging 2011 year. Coach Tim has been putting me on some pretty big training blocks of late, and I'm really glad that I'm finally getting some races in to see where I'm at. The overall program had virtually no preparation or taper for Kinloch scheduled as these events were to be used as hard training day's. Having a race as a training session allows you to really hurt and put in specific efforts that are hard to replicate in training by yourself. Kinloch turned on a ripper of a day and Triathlon NZ, Tri-Sport Taupo and race director, Wayne Reardon once again put on a superb event.

So though I was hoping to do well in Kinloch, I was also realistic about what the outcome might be, so despite a pretty average swim and cycle leg, I was able to put in a hard run, placing the 4th fastest run split overall, and happy to take away some positives and get an idea about how my training is going and where I'm at. 3rd in my age group was a respectable way to start the year off too.

Over the last few weeks, I've been working with my IronMaori Mentoring athletes and helping them to plan out their season and training programs. I'm totally blown away by their enthusiasm and eagerness to get cracking on a program - they are truly very inspiring people in their own right. Working with them has been brilliant, and I've been so stoked with what they have achieved so far and really looking forward to helping them to reach their goals.

The next few weeks see two more races used again as hard training day's, with the last one being the Takapuna Super Sprint Triathlon in Auckland on Feb 20. I've entered the Elite category for this race so I can race at a super hard level and pitch myself up against the big boys. As much as I really want to taper down for the race so I can be as fresh as possible, I have to remember that National Champs in March is the key race so I have to go into this one pretty fatigued as well. The race will be screened live on TV1 at approx 5pm on Sunday 20 Feb so if you can't be there in person, set a reminder and watch it live!

I'll hopefully be able announce some pretty exciting news in next month's update as well so stay tuned for that - lots of planning going on at the moment.

Thanks again for your continued support. 2011 is going to be a huge year for me and I'm stoked to be able to share it with you. Look forward to hearing from you soon.

Cheers,
Te Kawa


www.tkrobb.com
021 265 9446

By TK Robb

The run section of a triathlon race is probably considered the hardest part of the race, mainly because it's after you have already pushed yourself in the swim and then again on the bike, but also because the sudden transition from cycling to running takes a while for the different muscle groups to adapt and re-distribute blood flow to the muscles that need it most.