Catriona Morrison

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbBgMtKEwbw
http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/other-sports-news/ironwoman-morrison-s-amazing-comeback-triathlon-catriona-morrison-makes-amazing-comeback-to-win-lanzarote-ironman-1.1029952
 
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/life/women/health-and-fitness/2010/05/25/scots-athlete-catriona-morrison-stuns-male-rivals-after-recording-fastest-triathlon-debut-86908-22283875/

Firstly a huge thank you to everyone who helped me get here to Kona – friends, family, sponsors. Special mention to Richard for always believing in me and to Coach Phil for guiding, advising and putting up with more shit than he deserves!! Extra special mention to the other pro girls and supporters who shouted and gave me encouragement.Yesterday was a lesson in survival and determination. I would and could not come to this Island and not finish and I am proud (but obviously disappointed) to have finished and officially become an Ironman. Although I came here for a result I also came for the experiences, and they have been wide and varied and they are in the bag for next time. I swam well exiting with Belinda and Rebekah I was a happy bunny! The out portion of the bike seemed pretty relaxed and on turning at Hawi I felt as if I could push a little harder. However, this proved not to be the case and as I biked along the Queen K into the headwind I felt as if I was swimming upstream – the effort level was surpassing the speed generated! When I jumped off the bike I kinda knew that things were not right – usually my legs are heavy but yesterday they were made of lead and had anchors attached :-). Out and back along Alli Drive was really messy. This was one of the worst parts of the course as the buildings shade any air movement and it was darned toasty. I gimped my way back into town and stopped to get some sympathy from Richard and Phil and promptly nearly fell over. I think we all though that I was going to stop (in fact by that point I had stopped, quit triathlon, E-bayed all my gear and run into the boonies for a sustainable, self sufficient life growing potatoes and eating the eggs from my chickens). Anyway I owed it to myself and everyone else to finish this race and off I plodded (yes, that was the locomotion of the day, with jolly walks through all the aid stations). I swear I could not believe how far it was to the Energy Lab turn around, miles of cones as far as the eye could see. I was beginning to think that I should have swallowed my pride and stopped in town… but hey hoo, I was committed and eventually got into a rhythm of sorts and ticked the miles off. The last 4 miles were the longest and most painful ever. My legs, back and glutes were screaming – I swear I could hear the muscles shouting for mercy. I finished in 17th place, tired and beaten. I have first degree sunburn and I am finding it hard to walk as I am soo sore. This is a novelty as I usually don’t get too bad after a race and could provide comedy value as the day goes on as I randomly collapse.Two Ironman races done, a huge amount learnt. Things may have been different if I had been healthy over the past month and indeed the past week.  A lot of my energy was obviously going into fighting the chest infection that I picked up last week – but that’s in the realm of shoulda, woulda, coulda and I don’t live there. I did the best with what I had on race day and I have to be satisfied.Most of all I am humbled by the extra special performances that we witnessed out there yesterday: Chrissie and Crowie showing us the way, Mirinda smashing the run and Belinda for encouraging everyone whilst she was in a world of pain of her own and Leanda for showing guts and determination. Congratulations also to Rachel Joyce for a fantastic performance.Now sporting that sunburn which will be but one of the souvenirs that I take home from this Island!! Aloha 

Put it this way, if I didn’t laugh right now I’d be a sobbing mess. Still, it’s hard to be miserable in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and I’m bottling my energy and frustrations and putting them in the right place for race day.

Kona certainly is a different kettle of fish (lots of very bright ones actually, and the odd turtle). It’s true what they say about the winds and the heat – pretty intense. I think I have now experienced the extremes so shouldn’t get too surprised on race day. There’s a lot of preening and prancing, strutting and swaggering. You know me, I’m great at that (haha). I really should have invested in that fake tan.  Some things live up to expectations – the climate for example and the wonders of the volcanic landscape (but that’s the geologist in me) other things are a little more ordinary. Take the infamous Energy Lab. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it’s just a few wee huts with some solar panels on the top (apologies to the renewable scientists out there, I suspect there is more to it than that!). Right enough, it is a wee bit toasty out there.

(more photos in the gallery)

As for the race, I’ve come so far this season and even doing my first ironman distance race was a real acheivement for me. Kona is Kona, Cat is Cat. I’m here for the experience and the challenge and I’ll race as hard as I can and we’ll see the results next weekend. Until then, I’ll work on that tan. Or at least at becoming a darker shade of pale…..

Getting ready for the big one. It’s Friday night and I am packing for Kona. I’ve got a big day of training to get under my belt tomorrow and I head for Hawaai first thing on Sunday morning. It’s been a busy day. I picked up my very own CUSTOM kit from ENDURA today – it looks absolutely fabulous. Can’t wait to wear it J

 Photo from deraks.com

It’s been a super few weeks over in North America.

After the race in Calgary I stayed in town to visit with lots of friends (socialite Morrison!) and do some training amongst the fun. It was very special to be able to catch up and relax and also to train so close to the beautiful Rocky Mountains – many thanks to Sandra for letting me take over her house, terrorise her cat (TJ) and eat all her food. I even got the use the juicer to make the infamous beetroot juice… piccies of the trip in the gallery.

On Thursday I flew to Newark and hooked up with coach Phil in New Jersey. The plan was then a road trip up to New Hampshire for Timnerman. On Friday morning he took me out bike riding and left me in the middle of nowhere. Stranded I was – no phone, no sense of direction and of course I did not know his address or phone number. After some not do helpful help from a local with a worse sense of direction than me I eventually rode into a police station and gave myself up! They wrote me a list of directions and I made it home 3.5hrs later! Actually by this time Phil and the rescue party had called the police and I was on a wanted list described as a Scottish girl wearing a red top on a pink bike – I think that they sent out the fashion police.

 So, a delayed road trip start and a 9 hr car journey later and I arrive chez Amy and Kevin and Nivek (large slobbering giant of a friendly dog) in Gilford New Hampshire. They have an amazing converted farmstead – just beautiful and have been so open and friendly making my weekend extra enjoyable. Sat was a busy day course reccy, bike in to transition, etc etc. Sunday started ominously when we got stuck in the traffic trying to get to the race start and had to abandon ship in favour of the run to the start option. Luckily this seemed to be the only hitch of the day. I had a better swim and came out not too far down on the Chrissinator and Magali. I was unable to follow thier blazing bike legs but felt at least that I was stronger than in Calgary and kept pushing as hard as I could. On the run I caught Magali on the first lap of two. I felt great and was pleasantly surprised how comfortable I was given the heat and humidity of the day. At the end of the first lap I had reduced the deficit to Chrissie by 2.5mins (from 5mins) and ended up finishing 2mins back with the fastest run split of the day. So pretty satisfied with that.

I have to say that the post race feed tent was like a gourmet resteraunt – wow! And then the dinner in the evening, an experience! My hands still smell fishy from my first encounter with a lobster.

A lazy moring now. Packing and heading back across the water and home tonight. I miss my own bed and my husband but I’ve had an abfab month!

OK, for those of you who would like a little more detail of the weekend’s goings-on, here is the lowdown of Quelle Roth Challenge. My first long distance race.

Wed (pm): After an easy flight and hire car journey we (my hubby Richard and I) arrive in Abenberg at family Koenig – our wonderful homestay for the race weekend. Abenberg is about 10km from Roth. Everything it seems is 10km from Roth!

Thurs (am): Pro athletes have signed a contract with the race organisers to abide by the WADA anti-doping code. Every pro athlete has to have their blood tested prior to the competition to ensure that haematocrit levels are within the guidelines. This was the first time that I have ever had a blood test taken for doping control. It was a super efficient process. I was really impressed and it’s so important to the sport and the event that all the athletes are clean.

From doping to race briefing and I’m getting nervous! Some things I still need to get my head around (where does the bike go?, what’s the red bag for….?) Had a good time catching up with some other athletes and meeting some new faces. Finally meet Guy from Blueseventy – the man who sends me my wetsuit!

I’ve been invited to the pre-race media conference. For what reason I am not really too sure. I think it is because Chrissie has told the race organisers that they should watch out for me! Had an interesting time and appartently made a hit with the journalists. Mostly because I don’t think too hard before I open my mouth.

Time to get back into the reason that I am in town and Richard and I head to the expo to grab him some new bike kit. I go for a swim in the beautiful open air 50m pool in Roth and then for a wee run out at the canal where the swim will be at the weekend. The canal is huge and looks a bit imposing. 4k is a bloody long way when you see the course in front of you. Best not to think about it! Coffee and cake at the bakery.

Friday: A lazy day: long lie, a 90min bike, 3k swim. A meal out at a local guesthouse (very yummy) and bed. A good day away from race central where everyone is getting a bit manic. Coffee and cake at the bakery.

Sat: Down to the canal early to test out the water situation. Yup, it’s water and the swim course still looks a long way! Back home for second breakfast then a quick bike and run before packing the kit, packing the kit, packing the kit (it’s epic how much stuff seemed to need organised!) and then off to check the bike and run stuff into transition. Coffee and cake and then home for BBQ and bed.

I’m liking the coffee and cake trend.

Sun: Pretty shocking sleep really. Unusual for me as I’m usually a good pre race sleeper. I think that fear of the unknown kept my brain ticking over for longer than usual. Finally drop off after doing some mental prep – race plan in head and stress levels now low enough to drop off.

Down to the start – bike ready, nutrition loaded on and ready (everyone laughing at my bento box, what’s that about?!). General pre race nerves into action – portaloo needed! Wishing that I was on a beach far far away! Swim cord warm-up and out into the water with 400 other idiots. Really hard to tell where all the pro women are – so many bodies. I get myself to the front beside Leanda and Belinda and the gun goes off. No idea where anyone is, I just swim! End up alone at the front of a small pack. Luckily Belinda comes out the water at the same time. Yes it was a long way but was not really that bad to be honest. I think because the water is fresh (not salt), no waves and no currents to battle.

Onto the bike where I settle into a rhythm. I decide that  Belinda is biking at the right pace for me to key off. It was good to have people around during the whole ride. It’s such a busy course – you are always thinking, watching and paying attention so the miles fly by. We go past a few of the other pro women, catch Rebeckah Keat and pass Leanda. I miss my nutrition hand-out from Richard, so get a little worried but I carry extra gels and decided to use them and take on water from the aid stations. Credit to Richard though. He jumps on the mountain bike borrowed from our homestay and meets up with me later on the course so that I can get my powerbar goodies! The crowd support is bloomin’ amazing WOW.

Rebeckah, Belinda and I enter T2 together and I’m left hanging around in transition. I wanted to make sure that I was totally organised. I’d never run a marathon and the little extra pause gave me time to compose myself. I started running and was feeling pretty gangly for the first 3k. Onto the canal I settled into my pace – with my Garmin now working I realised that I was running 3m50s/km pace and did not feel too bad. Coming into the first turnaround my tummy was begining to stage a revolution – into the portaloo I went. From about 10k to 30k I was having a grim time. Walking, throwing up, pooping. Running, stopping. Finishing the race, pulling out. Up and down. Crazy. I finally seemed to get going again with around 12k to go, the legs came back, the head came round and I knew that I was gonna finish this ironman distance thing. I was just so happy to run into the finish zone with all the crowd cheering. It was pretty emotional and a really special moment. I finished an ironman, which was the main focus of the weekend. The fact that it was the fastest ever debut ironman distance finish and the 6th fastest in history is still sinking in….

Post race:Massage, food, press conference (more talking without thinking, may have to address this…!). VIP tent to chill out and drink some beer. Then onto the finish line with Chrissie to cheer in all the people still coming in. This was super fun. The night ended with some super fireworks and some more food..!

Now back in Broxburn with some nasty toenails, antibiotics for the rub from my timing chip that is infected and loads of smelly kit to deal with…

DO THIS RACE!

Photo from Jon Rainford – many thanks – others in the gallery!

It’s Monday morning at 9.30am. We are just in the door having returned from UK 70.3. 820 miles in the van and  70.3 miles self propelled over the past three days. The van was definitely the hero of the story this weekend: official team HQ in a field at Wimbleball for 70.3 UK: feeding station, stretching station and sleeping station. It also meant that by the time we reached the Lake District at 12.30 am on the way home last night that we could call it a day and park up before completing the 400 mile journey back this morning. I’ve got a 10am massage appointment to keep…!

It was a fun weekend from start to finish. A “home” race meant that Richard (my husband) could come to support me and generally take care of me all weekend – driving, cheering, mechanicing, cooking – so it was great to be able to repay his commitment to the cause with another win on the 70.3 circuit :-)

 It was a beautiful day in Wimbleball, so calm and still that the mist had descended and the start was delayed by an hour. By the time we set off I was feeling a little sluggish and did not really enjoy the swim. However, I think that I was around 2.5 mins behind Julie coming out the water, which is pretty much what I would expect. After climbing the Everest hill into T1, 3 pro women hit the bike together (Bella, Abigail and me). Abi talied off after about 3/4 of a lap leaving Bella and I together until the second lap when I pulled away on the hills. The entire course in Wimbleball is a hill fest – sharp climbs that are impossible to conserve energy on. Having a 27 cassette at least meant that I could try to save my legs. Meanwhile at the head of the course, Julie was (in her trademark style) making the bike look like a walk in the park, putting minutes into Bella and I. Trying to stay positive when the gap is exponentially growing is tough but I know that to have a decent run, I need to ride consistently and I beavered away. Hilly bike courses can do strange things to your legs and it was more than a relief to jump off the bike and run into the change tent feeling not too shabby in the old pins department. Jules was ripping it up 6 mins down the road, so I had my work cut out. If you think that the bike is mean at UK 70.3 you should have a laugh at the run course. It’s the full monty: X – country for the most part – trails, gravel, grass. And then there are the hills: little ones, big ones, fat ones and skinny ones! A hill for everyone! After the first lap the gap was down to 4mins, but I was still not convinced that I could catch; after the second lap it was 2mins 30s and I realised that it was game on. The only problem now was that I had to try and ignore the call of mother nature to go and fertilize the bushes. I needed all the time I could get to catch Julie. With about 4km to go I caught and passed Julie and was able to click off the remaining Ks to the finish. A big smile and a special kiss for husband Richard as I ran down the finish shute. A thousand thanks to him for making the weekend easy for me and, as always, endless thanks to all my sponsors who keep me training, racing – and winning ;-)

 Hopefully some photos to follow when I get them.

(more photos by Imre Foldi are in the gallery) 

I’ll be the first to admit that I was not relishing the prospect of lining up for the European Duathlon Championships in Budapest. My season has started with two great 70.3 events – all longer miles, so I have not been feeling speedy at all. In fact, I’ve not done anything speedy on the run or the bike for a while. Combine this with a DNF at the British National Triathlon Champs last week due to a dodgy tummy and a week and a half of X-trainer work as my Achilles has been niggling, I was not feeling in the best of form either mentally or physically. I learnt two important things this weekend 1) I was fitter than I thought 2) It can be very easy to talk yourself out of a race, but if you stay strong and believe in yourself, you can get the desired results.

(you’ll have to imagine the figures! overall wattage 210 (bang on 70.3 pace) my 4 laps solo at the front 218w) 

Early in the run Kat Grimmet – in her first International race for GB, took the bull by the horns and had built herself a substantial lead. On the last lap the group finally got back into contact with her and around ten of us entered T1 together. Unfortunately for Kat, she missed the pack coming out of transition and was swallowed by the second bike pack. Her strong second run ensured a top ten finish for her first GB vest – congrats!On the road there was a lot of faffing. I did a few solid (half  a lap and more) turns at the front. I tried to get away a couple of times, but without success – I think that with the longer miles in my legs I lacked the mental and physical sharpness to make a definitive break. After hiding for a while and covering some breaks I decided that biking at 160W was useless and I may as well get a decent training day. I put myself on the front, rode at half ironman wattage and towed the group for 4 laps. On the graph you can see at about half way when the watts become more level! I questioned my decision, wondering if I was sacrificing my second run, but with some decent running in my previous races this year I knew that I would run OK. It was more a question of everyone else having fresher legs….? I made sure into T2 that there was no overtaking me and stealing that first place spot onto the bike racks as I knew that I needed a super fast transition and fast couple of Ks to stand any chance of a win. I blasted my way out and within 1.5K had only one girl on my shoulder and as I went onto lap two I tried to put the pace up as much as I could. Thank goodness that at about 3.5k I felt myself pulling ahead. I was seriously breathing out of all orifices and held on to win my second Euro Champs. Very satisfying :-)Thanks to all the GB squad members who waited out the long day in the heat and sun to cheer me on.

When Chris asked me for my autograph and to have his picture taken with me I could hardly refuse! Har har. Last night was the Scottish Commonwealth Games Annual awards dinner – a chance to celebrate some sporting successes from 2008. The senior winner was most deservedly Chris and the junior winner was Kirsty McWilliam, world junior triathlon champion – wheyhey. We were both a little weak-kneed at the prospect of having a photo op with a quadruple Olympic champion!
A good way to finish off a fine week of training in preparation for World 70.3 champs in Clearwater. Also a week where I was ranked number one for 2008 in the ITU world duathlon rankings.