Must Watch/Listen/Feel From The Hawaii Ironman
We hope you enjoyed watching the Hawaii Ironman last Saturday as much as we did. It was a race of incredible performances up and down the field as Pros and Age-Groupers alike set some stunning times and course records fell in the lightening-fast (for Kona) conditions.
This week on the blog we have some interesting and inspiring links for you from around the internet to stories, interviews and quotes from many of those athletes.
If you've not heard of Ironman or the race out in Hawaii, all you need to know is that it's the ultimate triathlon of 3.8km (2.4mile) swim, 180km (112mile) bike and a full 42.2km (26.2mile) marathon run! Kona is the World Championship with a rough water ocean swim, very hot conditions and it's normally super windy on the bike and run too - epic stuff! Here's the official intro video for the world champs:
First up, whatever you do don't miss this interview by Bob Babbitt with women's winner Daniela Ryf reflecting the day after the race and giving us a real insight into her racing mindset. It was a phenomenal performance by the "Swiss Miss" to set a course record of 8:26:18 despite that nasty run-in with a jelly fish during the swim. After this you can really understand why she's such a great champion:
We love this clip of Daniela on the bike too, has any triathlete ever looked stronger at the end of the ride? : twitter.com/IRONMANtri/status/1051234171971141632
As you know from our own interview with Bob last year, Mr Babbitt has un-paralleled knowledge of the sport and a great ability to get into what makes an athlete tick. Also don't miss his interview with men's winner Patrick Lange who is rapidly becoming a legend is his own right, especially after lowering the course record to an unbelievable 7:52:39 :
Not satisfied with that, he thought he'd make the day even more special by proposing to his girlfriend on the finish line! :
Another super-impressive performance came from the ever improving Lucy Charles smashing the swim record in 48:14! : twitter.com/IRONMANtri/status/1052910418136637441
Of course (shameless plug alert!) you can see Lucy underwater and understand why she's such a swimming machine from our exclusive study of her stroke in the Swim Smooth Guru (subscription required): www.swimsmooth.guru/video/c2m/lucy-charles/
Britain's Joe Skipper came home in 7th place after a hugely improved 50:52 swim split:
Congrats Joe! Like many pro athletes, Joe's visited one of Swim Smooth's Certified Coaches for a tune up on his stroke (in this case Seamus Bennett). Cheesy selfie alert! :
What happened to Lionel Sanders on race day? He opens up bravely here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7C0voETgUc
Think you're getting too old to perform? Think again - 85-year-old Hiromu Inada (above) became the oldest finisher in IRONMAN World Championship history!: twitter.com/IRONMANtri/status/1052253338283126784
None drafting race? Chris McCormack shows us what the start of the age group bike looks like: twitter.com/MaccaNow/status/1052016688281993216
Lots of ideas in the comments on how to fix the problem. Our suggestion - change the race to a "championship distance" 10K swim at Kona - that will spread the field. ;)
Last but not least, friend of Swim Smooth Dan Plews (below) set an all-time age group world record of 8:24:36. We will have our exclusive interview with him next week on the blog - look out for it!
Swim Smooth!
Raced yourself? Let us know about your own experience at Kona by replying to this blog email or emailing blog@swimsmooth.com. We'd love to hear from you and don't forget to include any photos you have! :)
This week on the blog we have some interesting and inspiring links for you from around the internet to stories, interviews and quotes from many of those athletes.
If you've not heard of Ironman or the race out in Hawaii, all you need to know is that it's the ultimate triathlon of 3.8km (2.4mile) swim, 180km (112mile) bike and a full 42.2km (26.2mile) marathon run! Kona is the World Championship with a rough water ocean swim, very hot conditions and it's normally super windy on the bike and run too - epic stuff! Here's the official intro video for the world champs:
First up, whatever you do don't miss this interview by Bob Babbitt with women's winner Daniela Ryf reflecting the day after the race and giving us a real insight into her racing mindset. It was a phenomenal performance by the "Swiss Miss" to set a course record of 8:26:18 despite that nasty run-in with a jelly fish during the swim. After this you can really understand why she's such a great champion:
We love this clip of Daniela on the bike too, has any triathlete ever looked stronger at the end of the ride? : twitter.com/IRONMANtri/status/1051234171971141632
As you know from our own interview with Bob last year, Mr Babbitt has un-paralleled knowledge of the sport and a great ability to get into what makes an athlete tick. Also don't miss his interview with men's winner Patrick Lange who is rapidly becoming a legend is his own right, especially after lowering the course record to an unbelievable 7:52:39 :
Not satisfied with that, he thought he'd make the day even more special by proposing to his girlfriend on the finish line! :
Another super-impressive performance came from the ever improving Lucy Charles smashing the swim record in 48:14! : twitter.com/IRONMANtri/status/1052910418136637441
Of course (shameless plug alert!) you can see Lucy underwater and understand why she's such a swimming machine from our exclusive study of her stroke in the Swim Smooth Guru (subscription required): www.swimsmooth.guru/video/c2m/lucy-charles/
Also don't miss HUUB Design's chat with 3rd place finisher David McNamee (below) - huge congrats from everyone at SS David on another brilliant race: huubdesign.com/blogs/news/the-truth-of-racing-hawaii-as-a-pro
Britain's Joe Skipper came home in 7th place after a hugely improved 50:52 swim split:
None drafting race? Chris McCormack shows us what the start of the age group bike looks like: twitter.com/MaccaNow/status/1052016688281993216
Lots of ideas in the comments on how to fix the problem. Our suggestion - change the race to a "championship distance" 10K swim at Kona - that will spread the field. ;)
Last but not least, friend of Swim Smooth Dan Plews (below) set an all-time age group world record of 8:24:36. We will have our exclusive interview with him next week on the blog - look out for it!
Swim Smooth!
Raced yourself? Let us know about your own experience at Kona by replying to this blog email or emailing blog@swimsmooth.com. We'd love to hear from you and don't forget to include any photos you have! :)