Spring weather is synonymous with wind. Every year September through to November we are hit by some pretty fierce winds and this year is no different. Sunday’s first West Lakes race wasn’t spared, and competitors had to deal with a choppy swim, head, side and cross winds on the bike and a block head wind on the run.
I have raced in some pretty serious winds over the years- the final Melbourne IM when the swim was cut short saw us swimming out through some serious waves and chop, in Kona, my 2000 year is regarded as probably the windiest of days and I am still scarred from having a ferocious head or cross wind for 140km, and one year at Wirrina you ran down the hill to the Marina at the same pace as you did coming up the hill as the wind funneled up through the cliffs from the ocean. This was the same year the wind picked me up and blew me across the road as my brother and some mates were about to pass me in his car while videoing my ride. They were left shaken not believing what they saw. So, what have I learnt – “we can either let the conditions win or we can find a way to get them working for us.”
Mentally if you embrace the wind on race day you are already ahead of your competitors who typically switch to survival mode. But it is in training where most of the gains are achieved and where we learn how to embrace it.
In the swim this means leaving the security of the pool and braving the open water. Monday morning open water swims can often throw up a windy, chop effected conditions and while the lake is a little more protected you can find some serious wind chop under the Boulevard Bridge out to island point.
While there are strategies for improving your ability to swim in the chop, such as lifting stroke rate and using a straighter recovery arm, however as Asad found out last year, the key is to just embrace it. After being smashed in previous choppy swims, to the point where he was ready to quit the sport, he went out and braved some super rough conditions in training and learnt to just enjoy the craziness of it all. He learnt to let the waves lift you up so you can sight and then make the most of the flatter patches. In the end he found he actually enjoyed the rougher days.
On the bike we all love a tail breeze, but the head wind and cross winds are where we find out who is a rider and who just rides. Again, the key is to get out into the wind. Saturdays TTT ride gave us a great chance to learn how to handle our bike in the wind and the repeated laps and changes of wind direction meant you got to test any number of things out
But windy days represent a great training opportunity. While we all love climbing hills, a head wind offers just as many advantages. It is funny because we don’t mind climbing at 10kmph up a hill but if we have to do this on the flat into the wind it usually defeats us!
Busselton is usually windy so these windy rides help us prepare mentally so there are no surprises but it will also be a good chance to practice eating and drinking while the wind is blowing. Most are just hanging on for their life, so they simply don’t eat or drink and they pay for it later in the day.
On the run the wind will slow you down. Usually, it will mean your average pace will be 5-10sec/km slower than usual. However even with the strong wind on Saturday many were able to score some great Pbs at the West Beach Park Run. The keys are to hide behind others when running into the wind and then making the most of the tail wind to blow you home.
So don’t just cherry pick the good days, whether it be hot, cold, wet, or windy, embrace the day for whatever it can offer and turn it into a strength.
Happy training and please feel free to contact me if you have any triathlon training, coaching and racing related thoughts or questions.
Nigel