Change of Focus. . . . . Darley Moor Duathlon World Champ Qualifier

Loads of time has slipped by since my last post - nothing new there. But there has been lots happening and my planned races have not happened due to illness, mostly. I contracted a chest infection that just did not shift. I basically lost 5 - 6 weeks training and then struggled to train at any intensity for weeks afterwards. Only recently have I been able to push the effort to any degree. As normal, I was not a happy bunny. Some other domestic and work pressures have added more chaos to the mix and the last few months have been pretty much a training write-off. On the plus side, I have my imported van now. This van is awesome for racing excursions and camping etc. It feels like going back to the good old days! Amongst the chaos and feeling sorry for myself, I tried to reflect on what I could achieve with my racing. Cutting out the route to realisation, I came up with the fact that I needed a new direction; something that could motivate me and fit in better with my life. I came up with the idea of focusing on Duathlons. I was never going to be a great swimmer (though I enjoy swimming immensely) and it was costly to get to the pool, restricted by session time and I always found myself chasing down the field after the swim leg of a triathlon because I was way back. Despite no real race fitness I managed to get a late entry into the Darley Moor Sprint Duathlon on 22 Sep 19. This happened to be a World Champs Qualifier. So although a local race, the standard of competition was likely to be quite high. With no expectations I found myself looking forward to the race - armed with my new focus for the following season. Come race day it was wet. . . . .very wet. But at least it was warm. First run was ok and I held back a bit for an 18:21 4.8k. Not a great time but then I have not been training that much. I enjoyed the bike a lot. Even the rain didn't impact my enjoyment. Second run was 9:50 for 2.5k. Again not great but I held it together. Overall, 2nd in age group by 16 seconds. I could see the chap in front but the gap stayed constant and I couldn't catch him. So a World Champs slot for Sep 2020. Whether I get to race these champs, who knows!