World Championship Super Series- Kitzbhuel

Over the last week I have been away racing in my first ever world cup event- 9 of the top 10 from Beijing were there- tells you how tough the field was. However I put in the best race of my career to date taking 17th.

The swim was a wetsuit swim for it was raining which forced the water temperature down just before the start. 75 guys fought to get round the first turn buoy in the lead and after a few fist fights I made it round inside the top25. The swim wasnt the greatest as I struggled from having not swam in a wetsuit in almost a month- I was convinced the swim would be non wetsuit but I exited the water 30seconds down surrounded by some of the best bikers in the sport.

By the time I got on my bike the weather was very Scottish and the technical downhill sections resembled a river rapids- in all there were about 5 separate crashes- some comical, some painful, some I just missed. Hearing some one scream as they hit the ground is never a good sound. Despite a few scares and a full out first 10ks on the bike I made it to the first pack and held there for the remainder of the bike leg.

Jumping of the bike and on with the run shoes the legs felt goos and I was quickly in a good rhythm. The course was fairly flat but with 3dead turns in it every lap. 4laps in all. I posted a 32.20 for my 10ks which is a pb and a big step up.

A 5minute race video can be found on www.triathlon.org

Next stop on the super series is London- the Olympic games course first test run. Hopefully I`ll be there and I believe it may be broadcast live on bbc2.

Blenheim Elite Race- A step in the right direction

So after two disastrous races to start of my 2009 campaign I finally made the breakthrough I've been training for finishing 4^th at Blenheim. It's a frustrating thing when you're training great but somehow you can't produce it in a race but thankfully it finally all came together.

The swim was a bit of a tussle especially rounding the final turn buoy where there was a manic sprint over the final 100 to get a good position on the exit. I left the water at the end of the first bike pack but had a good transition which got my comfortably in the first bike pack.

The bike was 3x7k lap and the first lap was hectic with people attacking at will, people counter attacking and some just holding on for grim death- just like an APR. On the 2^nd and 3^rd lap the pace was more sedate as coldness set in and the muddy country paths the race was held on were pretty flooded.

The 2^nd transition went smoothly and I left in 3^rd albeit running on what felt like stumps for my feet had no sensation in them whatsoever. I managed to find a good rhythm and was running in 3^rd for most the race but was caught just before the line and finished in 4^th.

The race itself will be televised on Channel 4 Saturday June 28^th at 8.30. I'm the one wearing the red, white and blue tri-suit (It stands out a mile).

David McNamee, International Triathlete

Testing Times

I've really been getting back into the time trials this month, with the Scottish 10, the first two rounds of the Rabbie Burns 250 series, and the Glasgow St Christophers event on the A77 course tonight.

The Scottish Champs had really tough conditions, the wind never seemed to help, but did plenty to hinder! Tonight was much better, warmer and significantly less wind (hence an improvement of nearly a minute!).

The Dumfries CC 25 mile was super tough - only a few miles of the course were flat, and the climb to Beattock summit almost made me stop and cry at the side of the road! Jim Cuisik was unbelievable there - 56 minutes on that course is impressive. I'd secretly been harbouring hopes of a sub-hour ride, but think I'd need a cracking good course for that!

The Ayr Roads event on the Pennyglen Circuit was more my cup of tea - actual climbs rather than rolling drags - and I collected my first TT podium of the year, and only 2 mins behind Jim this time (helped by his 400 mile drive and arrival 15 mins before the start!) - next time I need him to drive the full 1000 miles, and get straight out the car and onto the line to stand a chance! I was glad to have recce'd the route beforehand, and chose the TT bike, and decided to take it steady on the first couple of climbs! I'd ridden that course in a British Series TT in 1995 as a junior, but after a lengthy search for my 2005 training diary found it blank for that day!

So I think I may be leading the 'Burns TT Series now after 3rd place in Dumfries and 1st in Ayr, and I also may be taking it a bit too seriously, with Lance style course recce's!

Anyway, away to see how I can get more aero - only kidding!

Neil Walker

French Grand Prix

FGP (french grand prix) Action

It was just after my latest round of `testing in the lab with the usual loss of blood, pain, soreness and ultimate exhaustion with the only thing left to do for the day was to contemplate what to have for dinnerthat the manager of my French team- US Vendome rang to inform me that
`We need you in France tomorrow`.

Well not one to disappoint I booked a last minute flight and less than 24hours after the call I was sitting in Charles de Gaulle airport munching down a croissant waiting for the Czech boys in the team to arrive. The first race of the French season was happening in Dunkirk and I had received a last minute invite to join the party.

Race Day- There was rumours round the pontoon that one of the new recruits this season was in the Beijing Olympics for 1500free. After the swim where a Spaniard left the `best` swimmers in triathlon trailing by 20seconds reality hit. Unfortunately I had taken a pummelling over the first 200metres and limped out the water a lot further down the field than usual and ended up in the second bike pack.

The bike leg was a 4x5k loops round the port with cobbles, dead turns, and roundabouts each lap. I've never raced on cobbles before but have watched many a Belgian classic on television and always thought `It surelyaint that hard? ` My aching back and shot nerves told me otherwise after 20ks.

The 5k run leg was a rather standard affair with me neither excelling nor running bad. I picked up a few places towards the end which gave me a finish of 53rd out of 90- not exactly pleasing but at least its only round1.

British Elite Championships

The morning after the day before- yesterday was the British Olympic Distance Elite Championships and it ended with me DNF when my saddle came loose on my bike which is acombination of bad luck and my own fault.

The race started of well enough with only a few smacks given out and received during the swim and I left the water in the first pack and after a few k`s on the bike I was sitting in the lead pack of 6 - the highlight of the race for me. However from there on in it was all downhill with me struggling to find a rhythm and I ended up getting dropped from the pack after getting a technical section completely wrong.

It was then going round the next left hander that my saddle went from a horizontal to an almost vertical position which led to the end of my race- to be fair I could of carried on by standing for the rest of the bike but mentally it was the end of me.

Moving on my 6k swim in the pool this morning was a mixture of steady swimming whilst I mentally beat myself up followed by erratic max pace swimming when I got overly angry with what happened. This occurred for the entire 90mins I was in the water. I`m sure my run this afternoon will follow a similar trend. Sports a cruel thing..... at the end of the day there is only one winner.

Tabloid Superstar

A month of……….. APRs, swimming in 10degrees water, losing my phone, competing in one competition ,finishing 3rd at British University Champs, finding my phone, photo shoot with the Daily Record, another photo shoot with the Sun on Monday, one exam done, one more exam left, losing track of time and running out of it daily.

It's been a busy time lately with it being exam period at University and dealing with a detour down to Swindon to race at British Uni Champs. That coupled with a twice weekly dose of APRs has left me pretty tired tonight- the wind meant that tonight we battled along at 25kph in one direction and flew along at 50kph the other way. The main thing however is that training has been progressing well and it's almost time to reduce the training load to freshen up for British Elite Champs on the 17th. I'm confident I can produce a good performance but anything can happen on the day so in some cases its fingers crossed.

After British Champs I'll be in a better situation to asses my other goals for the season but racing for my pro French team will be an important goal for it's where the best in the world race so every race is a learning experience. Well im of to bed for I can squeeze in 8 and a half hours sleep. There's a lot of uni work needing done but that can be saved for another day.

David McNamee, International Triathlete

Time Travel

The time trial season is now upon me, with mixed success. Despite an early start (4am feeding Grace, then 7am getting up!) I managed a personal best (well, last few years PB) of 23.19 at the Fullarton Wheelers event at the end of April. Conditions were good with little wind, but equally little warmth (we had to scrape ice of the car in the morning!). I was pretty happy with that until I saw a picture from the race, and was horrified with how un-aero I looked!

Anyway, a few tweaks (a bit more Levi Leipheimer now) and a couple of training sessions on the TT bike, the first of the club TT's took place in horrific wind on the Chapleton course. This involves 5 miles slightly downhill (with a gale behind), then 5 miles back up said hill (with a massive headwind!). 25.11 was pretty decent in the conditions, but 12mph is something one should never see in a time trial!

Round 1 of the Rabbie Burns 250 Series at Eglington tonight was sensibly cancelled. With gusting winds, and a lot of standing water on the A78, visibility was very poor, and it would have been an accident waiting to happen. I felt a bit sorry for the good folks who had travelled over from Edinburgh though - I was at least able to have a burn-out on the turbo when I got home!

The Scottish 10 on the A77 course will be a good leg-stretcher before the Rabbie Burns Series gets underway with the Beatock "25" and the Pennyglen Hilly.