After finding out that I had qualified for the Ironman World Champs in Hawaii, I was looking for somewhere to do my final build before the race. In an ideal world, I wanted a little altitude (but not too much) a little heat (but not too much), and good training partners. Oh, and it would help to have a good massage therapist and a good coach, and somewhere not too expensive…
I contacted my old coach Darren Smith who I thought might have a few athletes training in Sedona, Arizona and was very grateful when he agreed to help me out. Darren’s squad has been dubbed the D-Squad and his athletes have been increasingly successful over recent years. He is rightly considered one of the best coaches in the sport right now. The group in Sedona included some stellar ITU girls; Lisa Norden, Anne Haug, Vicki Holland and Jodie Stimpson, and an equally stellar group of Ironman boys; Chris McCormack, Ronnie Schildnecht, Fraser Cartmell, Bart Aernouts, and Cam Goode. Michelle Wu, Fiorella Dcruz and I represented the long course girls. There were also a handful of new-recruits and development athletes that were hanging around on various weeks here and there. I was certainly not lacking in training partners.
Darren himself was pretty much the same guy that I remember; smart, witty, and driven. He has worked very hard to develop himself as a coach and takes the same full-speed-ahead approach with his athletes. His success at the Olympics was not accidental. And from what I observed, I predict his success will actually increase over the next few years.
Darren also has a way of speaking his mind, right or wrong, at appropriate times and also at inappropriate times. Some people find this aspect of his personality difficult. I certainly used to when I was younger. Now that I am a little more “mature”, I find I can laugh more easily at his antics. Smart people rarely have a full range of social skills (sorry Daz, but its true ;)
Anyway. During my time in Sedona, I made some significant progress. Realizing I was gluten intolerant (see previous post), left me with oodles of energy and I was able to train hard. Clint and I made decisions on a daily basis about how to make the best of the group sessions, and I ended up putting together 3 pretty strong weeks. One day I got to ride 195km with “the boys”. Luckily, Macca wasn’t out to set any speed records that day and I was able to sit in and enjoy the ride. We even stopped for coffee. Michelle and I did a handful of quality long rides together, and I was grateful for her company. In the pool, I had Lisa and Vicki in the next lane, so I could look over and think, ‘so that’s how its done’. I was constantly taking mental notes. Noticing little things about stroke or about the habits that make people successful, stuff like that.
On the technical side, Darren had picked up some new things from his time in Kenya. We worked on the track and on a couple occasions when I was running off the bike, D would come out on his little mountain bike and bark instructions at me as I ran. I was impressed at how many pointers he managed to come up with. I mean, if I watch an athlete run, I can come up with 2, maybe 3 things they could improve on. Darren had a constant flow of thoughts that helped me. How to run uphill, downhill, crest a hill, arms, shoulders, push back etc, etc… It was impressive and very helpful.
In the pool, we made a couple subtle changes (no point reinventing the wheel 3 weeks before Ironman!) that helped me find a better rhythm.
And I can not forget the massage and rehab guy, Rick. Rick is from the Netherlands but speaks as if he is from London. He is genuinely good at his job and has the time and energy to do things properly. In the end, my long-term hamstring niggle cleared up, I have better range through my hips for running and I genuinely don’t feel like an old lady anymore.
And so, my time in Sedona has left me feeling fit, more proficient and more mobile. Not to mention with a few new friends to follow at the races. Most of the D-Squad are here in Kona right now training for the World Championship Series Finale in New Zealand which is a week after Ironman. Its been really fun seeing everyone and i look forward to watching them race.
Big thank you to Darren for allowing me this opportunity. Thanks to Rick for taking an interest in my hamstring and other ailments. Thanks to Vicki and Anne who put up with me for the longest… as well as everyone else who made me feel welcome.
I wish continued success to everyone!
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