Day 4 - A disaster

Another 4.30am start!

Went out to the Elswick circuit today with the intention of riding my spare bike, the idea being that a change in frame geometry would give my back a rest.  This did work, but what didn't was that I had a tyre burst (not a tube, a tyre).  I'd flat-spotted it and it wore through.  Of course, the one thing I didn't have with me was a spare tyre, so at only two hours into my day, I had to drive to Kirkham to get spares.  This was a huge oversight on my part and cost me a lot of time.  A big thanks to Fylde Cycles for a quick and efficient service.  

Then back on the next lap and of course, the wind.  By 250 miles I was totally demoralised and was making such slow progress that I decided to abandon.  The Deca was just too much for me, I was sore, tired, thoroughly pissed off and feeling very sorry for myself.  But when I finally finished what I thought was going to be my last lap, I was met by three friends from Tri Preston, who in the nicest possible way told me to 'Man up'. Thanks Nicky, Nic and Shirls! I left for home, as the rain started again, making a solemn promise to my mates that I would get out again that day and see how I felt.  In the evening I did 30 miles on the Buckshaw circuit, with the surprise of being joined by a friend, Simon McGoran, who helped me round by talking about things other than the Deca.  (Simon was an elite triathlete, back in the days when it was OK to get naked in transition and noone cared!)  His support was invaluable.   I also realised just how much smoother the circuit at Buckshaw was and despite the rain (again!) it all seemed a bit more bearable.  

On the topic of support, this was one of my research areas while studying for my Masters in Sports Psychology.  The latest thinking is that in the world of sport, there are four forms of support that are important, Emotional, Esteem, Information and Tangible.  The first two have been extremely important for me over the last few days and I've been amazed at the sacrifices that friends have made to come out and see me.  It is much appreciated.  These two types of support are about strengthening belief and resolve.  Tangible support is about providing practical resources.  An example is Alan giving me his swim cap when mine split.  This might seem like a small example, but the fact that I was swimming with a hat held on only by my goggles was also a big distraction, which caused me to lose focus. So all forms of support are linked and different people will need different types and at different stages in a race.

A very poor day, but ultimately I'm still in there fighting.