Where: Hoi An, Vietnam
When: 23/08/08
What: Triathlon
Distance: Swim 1.5 km – Bike 40 km – Run 10 km
Originally, I had not planned to do this race. Although it’s organized by probably the best organizers (Tribob) in the business in South East Asia, the race does not offer any prize money. At the end of the day, I’m still an amateur (no sponsors) and racing costs money. I decided to contact my company and ask them if they had any interest in sponsoring me. A few months ago, I won an X-terra triathlon in Mui Ne and received quite a lot of press attention (newspapers, TV, magazines). To my surprise, they decided to pay for my flight, accommodation and registration fees, as long as I would show the company’s logo during the race and mention them in any interviews.
One of my colleagues had also entered the race, and to be fairly honest, it’s always more fun when you go to a race and you have some friends tagging along. Since the company was paying for it, I chose a pretty fancy resort to stay in. Japanese style decorated rooms in combination with a TV showing the Olympics almost made me not want to leave the room.
I knew before the race that the ½ Ironman in Desaru might play a factor in my performance in Hoi An. Would I have had enough time to recover? The moment I hit the water, I knew I hadn’t. I felt like a sack of potatoes. The swim turned into a struggle which I just wanted to get over and done with.
Once on the bike, I got into a pretty good rhythm. My heart rate was much higher than I wanted to and I tried to control it as much as possible. Going into an anaerobic state at such an early part of the race is just looking for trouble. I quickly started catching up with the faster swimmers and only one cyclist managed to pass me. I kept a pace I felt comfortable with and started mentally preparing for the run. The bike course itself was OK, a bit windy at times, but the biggest fear factor was definitely the Vietnamese motorists and pedestrians. When it comes to traffic rules, they live on another planet. What am I saying; they don’t have any rules whatsoever in Vietnam.
Going into transition, I heard over the speakers that the athlete in first place was too far ahead. The number two position was realistic and set that as my main goal. We had to run three laps of 3.33 km each. Before the end of lap one, I had caught everyone and somewhere in the back of my mind, I kept hoping the person in first place would bonk. Obviously that didn’t happen, and I finished the race in second place overall and first place in my age category. Although I felt I could’ve done better, Frederik Croneborg from Sweden deservedly won the race.
When: 23/08/08
What: Triathlon
Distance: Swim 1.5 km – Bike 40 km – Run 10 km
Originally, I had not planned to do this race. Although it’s organized by probably the best organizers (Tribob) in the business in South East Asia, the race does not offer any prize money. At the end of the day, I’m still an amateur (no sponsors) and racing costs money. I decided to contact my company and ask them if they had any interest in sponsoring me. A few months ago, I won an X-terra triathlon in Mui Ne and received quite a lot of press attention (newspapers, TV, magazines). To my surprise, they decided to pay for my flight, accommodation and registration fees, as long as I would show the company’s logo during the race and mention them in any interviews.
One of my colleagues had also entered the race, and to be fairly honest, it’s always more fun when you go to a race and you have some friends tagging along. Since the company was paying for it, I chose a pretty fancy resort to stay in. Japanese style decorated rooms in combination with a TV showing the Olympics almost made me not want to leave the room.
I knew before the race that the ½ Ironman in Desaru might play a factor in my performance in Hoi An. Would I have had enough time to recover? The moment I hit the water, I knew I hadn’t. I felt like a sack of potatoes. The swim turned into a struggle which I just wanted to get over and done with.
Once on the bike, I got into a pretty good rhythm. My heart rate was much higher than I wanted to and I tried to control it as much as possible. Going into an anaerobic state at such an early part of the race is just looking for trouble. I quickly started catching up with the faster swimmers and only one cyclist managed to pass me. I kept a pace I felt comfortable with and started mentally preparing for the run. The bike course itself was OK, a bit windy at times, but the biggest fear factor was definitely the Vietnamese motorists and pedestrians. When it comes to traffic rules, they live on another planet. What am I saying; they don’t have any rules whatsoever in Vietnam.
Going into transition, I heard over the speakers that the athlete in first place was too far ahead. The number two position was realistic and set that as my main goal. We had to run three laps of 3.33 km each. Before the end of lap one, I had caught everyone and somewhere in the back of my mind, I kept hoping the person in first place would bonk. Obviously that didn’t happen, and I finished the race in second place overall and first place in my age category. Although I felt I could’ve done better, Frederik Croneborg from Sweden deservedly won the race.
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