In September I called time on the injury which had become too debilitating to endure.  It is outrageous to think that my foot hurt every time I stepped for almost a year…outrageous for a ‘normal’ person –incomprehensible for someone trying to run marathons, track sessions and up mountains four times a week.

Injuries are very individual things but if I can give one lesson when it comes to the buggers it would be this…..Trust Your Intuition.  If it feels tight- then loosen, if it feels hot then cool it, if it aches then warm it.  In ten years of professional sport I have diagnosed each injury correctly from the offset.  My foot injury needed hands on treatment.  It was past the point of rest and passive therapy was ineffective.

I have been working with an amazing therapist here in Stellenbosch -Francois Retief.  The treatment is painful in the moment but incredibly relieving after each session.  Francois is open minded, versatile in approach and definite in action.  I don’t believe I would be fully training now without his help.

At the end of 2010 I was World 70.3 Champion and in great physical shape due to Brett’s coaching and support and our combined work ethic.  My 2011 was spoilt by injury which occurred from what I believe was lack of maintenance of my body.  The workload I perform is necessary to create champions but I have learnt the hard way that this workload has to be supported by both precaution and reactive therapies.

In October I made the tough decision to leave Team TBB when my contract ended at year end. Hard because I leave Brett, my best friends; – Bek and James and some superb sponsors in Cervelo, 2xu, Louis Garneau, Cobb Saddles and Avia.  My decision was made easy by believing the certainty of what my body is capable of when it is injury free and this must be made prime in my preparations for Ironman.

To be completely honest it is scary.   I have waited to announce my departure to honour my agreements with my sponsors but this leaves me sponsor less with a completely clear vest.  The future is exciting and bright but also unknown.  There are many new relationships to form, as well as old ones to maintain .Ultimately progression prevails and I can’t wait to race again pain free and happy.  Once this is a given then Hawaii 2012 beckons and I will attack it in the 100% way I do.

In the coming months I’ll be racing South Africa 70.3, Abu Dhabi triathlon and Ironman South Africa.  James and I are based here in Stellenbosch with amazing facilities and terrain for training, great training partners and each other.  My website www.ifollowtheswallow.co.uk will be revamped and hopefully new sponsors will step on board, embrace my ability and join me for my exciting journey to Ironman glory.

I need to thank Team TBB; its sponsors, Cervelo, 2XU, Avia, Cobb and Louis Garneau.  Thank you to Alex and mostly to Brett.  Cheers to the future-gold, achievement and happiness.

Jodie x

After living with James for so long a love for his taste in music has silently crept upon me.  I find myself mumbling Springsteen, Clapton (even Air Supply ) far too often and thus last night I did the dirty deed.  I stole his music files.

I was so much looking forward to my new playlist and it was the honey in the bitterness of waving goodbye to my boy in Aigle.  I get to run home accompanied by the old rock classics.

So I set off up the mountain (yes-don’t ask ).  Press play…….Fine, OK…….Hang on is it on repeat? ….shit, it’s the only bloody song on there.  The ipod has been restored to owning a title of one song.

http://youtu.be/TbfYAYNFOos When Love takes Over………..x 16

It actually could have been worse….it could have been Air Supply, surely I would have been crying by round 5.

As I ran on, I made up new lyrics for my coach.  ‘When foot takes over, oh yeh, you know u can’t deny’……-you can replace foot with knee or toe or head or bum etc depending on your injury.

He has been saying it all along.  I’m such a lucky athlete.  I have lots of great tools, I live in the mountains, I have all I need, the kindest, most genuine friends, an amazing boyfriend, a great family and yet I let a sore foot cause mayhem wherever it is planted.  Swimming pool, cleat, treadmill, and pavement have all suffered the plague of my foot injury.  I’m really sorry.  Foot took over.

Anyway end of chapter, lesson learnt.   Everyone knows it’s coming right because the smile and the attack are back.  And everything is rosy again.   Next time I promise I will do my best to make sure that an injury will never determine my mood.  In the end it’s an injury and it will come right.   Work and talent will shine as always and titles shall be reclaimed.

If you are injured-remember that, it’s so easy to forget.  And don’t steal music

J x

Triathlon races are funny events-funny, weird.

The first triathlon I ever did was in 2000 in Windsor. I don’t remember much about the race except I remember thinking it was all a little odd. Everyone was making such a big deal out of everything…..what they should eat on the bike, their taper, number belts, elastic laces, lubricant, Vaseline, shaving …it all seemed a bit……. well…. silly. In my then boyfriend’s words, ‘all a bit too camp’. We were both seasoned athletes and had spent our teenage years equally clad in lycra and muscle. We were used to athletes, but there was something different surrounding the intensity of the people in triathlon – or at least the ones who presented themselves to us…an apprenticeship to serve, a snobbishness, a somewhat reverted elitism.

Ten years later and I’m converting to Ironman but nothing’s changed. Again, as a double World Champion, I enter race venues wondering if I’m missing something in the big picture. I’m the stranger, the novice in an elite, (slower than me) world. When I answer questions surrounding training and racing in an honest manner I get hit back with more scientifically constructed acronyms and research. No matter how hard I press the ‘Just do It’ slogan (ironically a running slogan) the brick wall of understanding remains tall.

I am now labelled ‘the blunt one’….with the hard work philosophy, ‘the simple one’, ‘the maniac’. Whoah, whoah, whoah, whoah – how wrong an assumption to make. I’ve had enough of beating around the bush about it it’s all a load of bull.
This will be no ordinary triathlon blog. Call it the anti-forum for its lack of b*ll*x. There may be little science, lots of mood swings, fashion and shopping talk….wait even…. MAKE-UP ADVICE….so un professional for a pro triathlete to care about such trivialities (as demonstrated by Amanda beard, Sharron Davies,Flo Jo, Blanka Vlasic, Brooke Bennett, Summer Sanders, Denise Lewis, Jess Ennis etc, etc).

I’ll talk bras, I’ll talk saddle sores, hey I’ll even talk periods if you like (not exclusively of course I’d be a very shite agony aunt). I will give the real story on blood, sweat and tears, because being a Jodie Swallow ‘Normal’ effects training just as much as training effects being Jodie Swallow ‘Triathlete’ (I am the same flippin person!!!!).

I’ll be me, who knows if my ramblings will teach you anything about performance, I really hope so.

I’m out in La Santa, Lanzarote at the moment with many of the British team as we try and get into gear to lay down some work for 2011. It’s been a pretty successful set-up , fairly December-like, and although I have had a few ‘bang my head against the wall’ moments – they have been rare and mostly about being tired more than anything else. We have been graced with the gorgeous presence of Matilda Sophia Don and her mummy Kelly who have been a wicked distraction to training (and evidently writing blogs ). She did her first 400m round the track at 9 weeks but is now been strongly coerced towards tennis or golf by her dad.

Most of the work has been fairly simple same-as-ever solid training, do the distance, work hard, go home. I have missed out on a couple of karaoke nights with the Leeds gang but I think us oldies will join them on Saturday for a Christmas send-off. I need to do a duet with Holly as I’ve heard she has an amazing voice … we were thinking of ‘Big Ego’ by Beyonce (not related to anyone here on camp, promise Guesses on Twitter.

The best thing on camp so far I think may have been mine and Helen’s ‘jinxed‘ attempt to chase Adam Bowden down up Tabayesco … we would have made it if her pump hadn’t fallen on the last switchback. We were close. I think you can tell from this exciting story how thrilling times in Lanzarote have been!

The best story on camp is from little Johnny Brownlee on our run yesterday. He told me he and his big bro came to get me and Anneliese Heard’s autograph at the Nationals in Salford in 2000. Liese was in a grump ‘cos she had been second so the boys were a little scared and Al too shy to ask so brave Johnny had to do it haha!! Apparently my autograph had a smiley face so was their favourite … how sweet is that… Al was 12 and Johnny was 10. They are both still stunningly cute and Al seems to have lost some of his shyness

Seriously, there has been a lot of time for reflection out here and my eyes have been opened to the risk of brain malfunction by a few conversations I’ve had. I really don’t want this to happen to me and thus need to get my brain back in gear. I think it’s time to start using my brain fibres before triathlon talk takes hold. I don’t mean coaching or blogging by the way, they count as triathlon spin offs. I’ll have you know I used to be fairly intelligent Maybe some serious writing may be the way forward … hold that thought … I’ll see what I come up with.

Race season planning hasn’t been confirmed for me yet and I’ll talk it through with Brett very soon and let you all know. Meanwhile I’m going to South Africa on Boxing Day to get back up to speed and take on 2011. New Year’s resolutions won’t be triathlon based this year because I’m finally happy with my set up. Maybe I’ll just stick to the old ones; I must stop spending money on shoes I can’t walk in (I bought some amazing gold KG ones at the airport but I don’t think the discotheque here can really justify them), I must be more tidy (not gonna happen), I must be more tolerant (probably not gonna happen), I must not fall for inappropriate men… Haha!

Happy Christmas dudes, enjoy xx

I’m back in England now (which seems to have become Greenland weather-wise) and finally have some time to relax a little and be a little more ‘normal’. I decided though after a day I hated it so I’m on detox, planning, action mode already … if you want to become more productive in your life I would recommend winning a World Championship ☺

People have asked me what the difference has been since I moved to Leysin and to Brett. The simple answer (and it’s not that simple, believe me. There have been reasons for not being myself.) is that I’m back to being myself. I’m not a triathlete as such but a reinvented swimmer. We’ve got back to the values I held close (and absolutely loved) as a kid. The hard miles, the long hours simply completed and forgotten on leaving the changing room. I train hard and I leave and I try not to talk triathlon if I can very much help it. I trust my coach implicitly; I don’t worry, I don’t question, I just do it. We train to become the hardest trainer in the world.

I am inspired by the performances of my training partners. Caroline Steffen’s silver at Kona, James Cunnama’s gold in Florida Ironman and Nicola Spirig’s win in Texas. All were achieved through hard work, endeavour, ambition and courage.
I wasn’t a rabbit on Saturday, I was just me going hard. I didn’t think about being caught, I wasn’t scared of anything because I was in the mood to put up with the pain. I couldn’t have swam or ridden any harder and I just wanted to show you guys what I can do and what we are about. Honest work; left on the road.

I rode a road bike because I had competed in the Korea World Cup en-route to my camp in Thailand and could not carry two bikes. I rode in a vented helmet because it was hot. They were the circumstances … it wasn’t any point about sponsors, time trial gear, cockiness and it wasn’t my ‘mean’ coach. It was just how it was. For all the comments about how I ’should’ be on a time trial bike, all I can say is I matched the fastest bike out there and we like to leave a little in the bank to improve

I also ran the fastest, and it was me that came out the water first … just to let Ironman Live know. If you type ‘Jodie Swallow’ into Google you can get my background up and my 5k track time and recent races hehe!

I’m so happy to be World 70.3 Ironman Champion I’m just letting it soak in before I hit 2011 preparation. Thank you especially to Sigma Sport, Rob Bailey, Instant Offices for seeing me through the harder times. I am very proud to be an Essex Ambassador. Thanks to Essex Legacy 2012.

Big cuddles for all my training partners at TBB… Especially to Bek Keat, Nicola Spirig, James Cunnama, and Amy Marsh… Not sure I could have done it without you guys to impress in training ☺ Motivation … it’s a funny thing xx

As my training base in Leysin got chilly I made my way back to London to complete some ambassadorial duties for Essex Legacy. The scheme has been amazing for me this year. It kick-started my finances and initially enabled me to move to Leysin and get the coaching I need. As Essex Legacy Ambassadors, we can opt-in and -out of appointments as we wish and see events we want to be involved with. I’ve done stuff with kids and sports clubs in the past, because I like kids and sports . This time, I thought I’d stretch myself a little. A speech (30mins) at the ‘Essex Tourism Conference 2010’ …on a stage, with a microphone and a spotlight. OMG.

I was a little bit of a ‘bod’ at school, (a cool one though ). I loved school and found it fairly easy really. There was one thing though I dreaded intensely for years …public speaking. I used to get shaky, sweaty. I’d rather die than talk to my classmates about whatever naff subject I’d failed to prepare for. In fact, if I prepared it would sound even worse.

I was pretty shy (still am, believe it or not) and it all started in Year 9 when we were made to dissect a piece of writing in a pre-release exam paper. I sat with a couple of boys who were pretty bright and we read the connotations (sexual and violent) into the piece pretty quickly, maybe a little too far … definitely too far . Anyway, I’m not sure if we were just dirt bags or just exceptionally good literature critics but it was fairly hardcore. Then, out of nowhere, I’m made to read it out loud. OMG … I was in fits, I couldn’t breathe from laughing and my accomplices just made it worse and worse. At one point I stuffed my sleeve into my mouth, spluttered everywhere and eventually got sent out to recompose. I was an angel usually and I hated being in trouble (especially because I think the teacher also got the notion of the explicit dual meaning in the prose). I blamed it totally on reading out loud and avoided it forever after this. I would say ANYTHING to get out of it and I did … until I had to start promoting myself and triathlon.

I signed up on purpose, citeing the purpose of self development as the main principle for doing this. I have opinions and lots of experience to give and if I don’t step up and present it – how is this ever going to be communicated? The speech was cool, the subject: ’How to continue the legacy of the Olympic games in Essex after 2012.’

I googled ‘Essex girls’ in preparation for my speech. I got photos of Jodie Marsh, Chantelle from Big Brother, (or was it Chanelle?), and a film called ‘Essex Boys’ – ‘the underground of drugs and violence’.

Not one of the top 50 ‘Essex people’ were sportswomen … Frank Lampard was in there. It’s not a great inspiration for Essex’s young girls to be looking at fame as big boobs and ‘easy’ celebrity. Hopefully, some of us ‘Essex girls (and boys) can step up to the mark in London and get into the minds of the Essex people like Sally Gunnell, Daley Thompson and Dean Macey once did. There are many of us capable: myself, Sarah Claxton, Andy Turner and many other Essex Ambassadors are already on the scheme.

I got home that night to discover that a new TV show, ’Made in Essex’ has begun. It follows the lives and loves of five ‘typical Essex people’: they revolve around hairdressers, tanning parlours and night clubs – another slash in the turnaround image for Essex.

Next day I flew out to Parthenay to compete for Poissy in the French Cup. The competition is a sprint triathlon where the first team to get three girls over the finish line wins. Obviously different tactics ensue … good swimmers/bikers are employed to drag the runners round quickly for their section. Beauvais are usually Poissy’s main threat and indeed had Andrea Hewitt, Anja Dittmer and Vicky Holland in their star start list.

To make it even more challenging, the swim was moved into a pool and shortened because of poor water quality. Berengere Abraham/Marine Bonnetaud/Carole Peon/Jess Harrison and I all smashed the swim and bike together … I took on the straight sections and let my girls guide us around the corners. Onto the run it was down to Peon and I to help and support Bonnetaud to run with us, as fast as possible. She did marvellously. I do not envy either girl having me shouting and pushing them for 17mins on the run … I’m annoying at the best of times but it worked – we smashed it, won by a mile and are now French Cup Champions 

We partied well … French Grand Prix style and it was a productive and really fun weekend, catching up with friends, racing hard, winning and celebrating. It’s very important to me to celebrate victory because the rest of the time I’m training to get there.

Because I’m away from the UK a lot these days, when I’m back I try and take the chance to visit sponsors as much as possible. Hopefully, they like to see me, but obviously I need their help too. I travelled to Kingston on Monday to drop in at Sigma Sport and get my bike serviced and race ready for the up-and-coming competitions. I also got to check out the progress of their new superstore in Kingston and it’s looking amazing. It’s going to be revolutionary in UK triathlon stores; much cooler and more boutiquey than your average bike shop. It opens mid-November and after Clearwater I’ll go and see it actually serving and in action.

Sigma kitted me out for the next races, which is no mean feat – I’m travelling to do an ITU race in Korea then to Thailand then straight to Tampa for World 70.3 Champs at Clearwater. It takes a lot of organisation to make sure I have everything but luckily I had a few good minds at Sigma on my side. It’s the little things like spare tubs and valve extenders that I forgot, so to wander round and see the essentials on the shelves is invaluable. The awesome mechanics sorted my bike anyway and now hopefully I have a lean mean racing machine (tbc!!! )

Talking of organisational skills, I was due to travel to Korea for the Tongeyoung World Cup on Tuesday and whilst I was packing I realised I’d lost my damn passport. Thankful as I am for all the great comments of help on facebook….,’ where did you last have it?’, and ‘it’ll turn up’, they didn’t help, and I was still passport-less. Mum thinks a Russian may have stolen it because ‘I look quite Eastern European’!! …haha.

One cancelled flight later and looking like a cancelled race, I pleaded with the Passport Office to help me out. 24 hours later I was on a new flight, albeit via Bangkok to Busan in South Korea, and trying to disperse the adrenaline junk in my bloodstream from getting to London Victoria (including Urban Outfitters, Niketown and Topshop), Heathrow, Bangkok and Korea in one day.

I arrived 20 hours before the race and slept very, very little in those two days. My coach and I made the decision to ignore the jet lag and just race. I met a few race friends and checked out the course but other than that, that was about as much thought I gave to the race … other than I needed to be out of the water ASAP … the fish were flippin’ massive – as big as my leg, and they flew. Scary stuff.

I could go through the race but basically I swam hard, got out on the bike in a two-up … burned the other girl off on the first lap and just time trialled it. It was tough, but that style of racing always is and I felt really strong and focused. I knew I could hold the two minutes I built on the run and did just that – crossing the pack of about eight near enough at the same place on each lap. Their pack gradually disintegrated with the distance until Anja Dittmer and Ainhoa Murua accelerated to claim the other medals. It’s my first World Cup victory, ever, and it’s filled me with confidence for next year. It was brilliant, I’m so glad I rebooked that ticket and I will NEVER lose my passport again I won’t need it for London anyway

From Korea I’m now in Thailand training up for Clearwater World 70.3 champs in November. I hope I can do you all proud there too. I’m after it!

Jodie Swallow wins in Tongyeong - Image courtesy ITU Media/Jero Honda

Tongyeong, South Korea – 16 October 2010: Great Britain’s Jodie Swallow closed out the World Cup season with a dominating performance to win the Tongyeong ITU Triathlon World Cup.  Using a solo breakaway early on the bike, she held her lead right through to the finish to win her first career World Cup title more than 90 seconds.  Triple Olympian Anja Dittmer of Germany out-dueled Spain’s Ainhoa Murua for the silver.

“It’s amazing,” said Swallow at the finish area. “I wasn’t really expecting it.”

Swallow was first out of the water and also first out of T1 with Radka Vodickova and Neiske Becks close behind.  But on the first lap, Swallow decided to break away and go on her own.  Hammering it on the moderately hilly 40-kilometre bike course, Swallow built a one minute lead by the midway point.

The main chase group-which included many of the top contenders including reigning Under 23 World Champion Emma Jackson, Murua, and France’s Carole Peon and Dittmer, continually lost time with every lap.  By the bell lap, Swallow’s lead grew to almost 90 seconds and when she stepped onto the flat 10-kilometre run course, she owned a lead of more than two minutes.

Shortly into the run, it was clearly going to be a tall order for the other women to reel Swallow in.  By the first lap, Peon, Dittmer and Murua emerged as the other serious podium contenders.  The trio slowly dug into Swallow’s lead but as they entered the bell lap, Swallow was still running strong and looked to have the victory sealed.

The real battle was going to be for silver.  Past the midway point, Peon started to struggle with an Achilles injury and quickly faded back leaving Dittmer and Murua to fight for second.  Running side by side on the final lap, the German veteran kicked into another gear and pulled away for the silver, the 17th career World Cup medal of her illustrious career.  Murua took bronze for her first ever trip to the World Cup podium.

Ireland’s Aileen Morrison finished 4th while Becks rounded out the top five.  Peon struggled with injury but hung tough to finish the race in 6th position.

Tongyeong ITU Triathlon World Cup
Final Results – Elite Women
1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10km run
1. Jodie Swallow (GBR) Click here for audio interview
2. Anja Dittmer (GER) Click here for audio interview (English & German)
3. Ainhoa Murua (ESP) Click here for audio interview (English & Spanish)

So, six days after meeting last time we were off again. The beach start and less predictable nature of a sea swim makes it possible for us Poissy girls to make an impact on the swim and spilt the field;- Bebe Abraham and Jessica Harrison and myself were together at around 400m and it looked like this tactic was working. Sometimes, for no apparent reason things come together in races – it can take only a tiny occurrence or person to influence a whole set of results good to try and be that person-making a positive action to dictate a race. I train really hard and it is my aim to make sure that that attribute I have … to push myself … comes out when I race.

Suddenly in T1 I had 20 secs on the chase pack and was exiting transition with youngster Lucy Hall … an excellent British junior swimmer. Yesterday that was enough to break it. I led for near on the whole 20km on the bike with little Lucy getting a helping hand to pull away. Not an easy hand though, I was killing myself and I’m really impressed Lucy hung on in there and stayed on my wheel. Lap 1 was 30 secs, lap 2 – 50secs and lap 3 – 65 secs between us and the chase pack which included including the Beauvais girls;- Hewitt, Dittmer and Holland, my teammates Harrison and Peon (who were saving their legs to run hard counting on me to secure a win), along with Samuels, Moffat, Davis Riveros Diaz, Sweetland and Jackson … a pretty scary name list to have chasing you – riding solo – I can tell you!

The championship hinged on this race and our places and with Hewitt ultimately running a 16min 5km I had to shift. But I did it … I won with about 30secs in hand with Hewitt 2nd, Moffat 3rd. My Poissy girls suffered with fatigue from a long season; we finished a brave 2nd place in the team competition. There have been so many injuries in our team this year and also clashes of priority in such a hectic international calendar that although Poissy love to win we kept our honour there for the club and its sponsors.

I also won the drugs testing race to produce 90ml of urine … despite premature attempts by Miss Hewitt and Miss Moffat We all desperately wanted to see the men’s race unfold and I was lucky enough to just be done in time to see the Brownlees and Gomez cross the line hand in hand. It was brilliant, to see the top three men in the world of triathlon at the moment, crossing together and working as a team. Even though their green trisuits are pretty minging ☺

I have some late season races to come still so will keep blogging whilst a few of my compatriots take their well earned breaks and we all get ready to hit it again next year. I’m glad I have finished the summer season on a high and obviously that I learned from my mistakes last weekend … that’s very important to me because as they say ‘you’re only ever as god as your last race’.

The only constructive blog I can think to write about my grumpy week is one akin to an episode of ‘Grumpy Old Men’… aka ‘Sulky Little Jodie’. A series of moans that epitomise my hates in life… Almost as much as average results… Almost.

The overbooking of flights

I spend an amazing amount of time travelling and therefore need journeys to run as smoothly as possible. So… I get to the airport in plenty of time for the flight that I have already paid for and have carefully assimilated to fit in with train/car, drop off and pick up times. . I wait patiently to check in and suddenly…’that’ face on the check-in attendant.

’What?’ I ask, the attendant looks curiously at me. ‘What’s wrong?’

’We have no seats left, the flight is full’, the girl looks vaguely embarrassed but curiously still manages a degree of nonchalance.

’What? It can’t be full….I booked my ticket two months ago, that’s like paying for a concert ticket when there’s no seats left. I need to get to (Insert destination), I am racing in the (Insert important race), that’s why I choose to pay my money to come on this flight- I carefully manipulated the time to fit in a swim/bike and track session before I left to come here’

‘Yes, there is nothing we can do -the airline overbooked’, she looks ever so much more like a witch at this moment.

‘Yes….you are the bloody airline, right?’

‘Oh no we are the carrier’, she looks at me like I’m a retard for not understanding this ‘rudimentary’ point. ‘It is not our responsibility….you should be thankful we can get you on a flight in 8 hours with a change in Munich where your bike will be left for you to sort out because it is not our responsibility’

Swiss Air, you suck… Airlines, you suck… Government, you suck… Sort this out! Surely it can’t be legal?!!

Luggage Belts (Or the standing to close to them)

So… we have all sat on a plane for 12 hours and we all want to get to that hotel bed ( I actually am just frantic that the crap airlines have put my bike on board but that is an irrelevant point at this time). It seems many people, some races more than others (Spanish, Liverpudlians and ze Germans), need to get their luggage first. This is whether it comes out first or not. They often carry two trolleys which they sprawl across the line of the belt and ram into anybody’s ankles that have the misfortune of having to retrieve their bag that has won the baggage belt race. If Brad Pitt did this I would hate him, even if he was naked… Shoot anyone who stands in front of that yellow line. They are very selfish.

People that stand to close to you in queues

Leading on from the last point… Personal space is a human right. I may live on the continent but I preserve this British right … allow me it.

People who smoke in swimming pools

I first encountered this at Crystal Palace, swimming in the Southern Counties as a littlun. Then it was hamburgers… Trust me;- as good as they are, the smell of food when you turn at 50m into a 400m IM makes you heave incessantly… EVERY turn. Smoking is worse, smoking at altitude first thing in the morning even worse.

Smoking outside of places

I like the sun; I like to wait for things outside in it. Five times today I have done this and 5 times I’ve had to move because some selfish wanker has decided to sit next to me and blow cigarette smoke into my breathing line. It’s not a chat up its very, very unpleasant.

Rudeness on the internet

In normal life, people generally say hello, introduce themselves and then have a chat, incorporating a few questions if the need takes them along the way. It seems this general polite behaviour is being usurped by a more brash kind of communication delivered over the internet, namely on Facebook. These are some questions that have been put to me…on my ‘friends’ page- ‘What sports bra do you wear?’, ‘How much money do you make’, ‘What advice can you give me for my race next year’, ummm… my advice….use please and thank yous..That’s the best advice I will ever give you .

Broken iPods

I know and Apple knows that they can make a damp proof iPod…they would just lose A LOT of runners money so they don’t. I used to think I was the scatty one who broke everything but have since learned most triathletes go through an iPod every 8 weeks.

Triathlon marshals

This is quite a controversial one because we are all thankful to the great volunteers that run our sport. But guys…please direct…otherwise you might as well be a pole. Likewise, lately officials seem to be getting increasingly jobs worth about little things in races that really are nothing to do with triathlon. If I rack my bike and the rack falls down I don’t think I should pick up all the bikes. That’s just my opinion. Or, if the saddle stays on the rack whilst the seat stem drops….that’s not really my fault or intentional, what am I supposed to do? I would love to keep triathlon about the racing, rules are important but with a degree of measure.

Facebook

This is a love/hate one. Facebook is called f’’kbook or stalkbook for very valid reasons. In old times relationships must have been much easier because then you were not subject to hearing from your ex-loved one every day via mutual friends or news updates where their picture flicks up snogging some ugly tart or worse crying on a pavement 9 months on . Worse is the ‘memories application’ which kindly reminds you to relive ‘New York 2007’ in your archive photo album. If wanted to relive ‘New York 2007’, I’d have a look at my old photos and not wait for Facebook to suggest it.

We are back with Averageness

Hopefully this blog has demonstrated I’m fairly angry and fairly obsessive about the mood losing leaves me in. I’ve vented now and I am very glad I have because I’m pleased to say that today I won my first French Grand Prix in La Baule for my team Poissy. Andrea Hewitt was 2nd and Emma Moffat 3rd. (I love writing that !). I will blog separately but I’m now exceedingly positive and happy and might write 10 things that I love… They’d probably get me in trouble though… I’m also I’m on a train to the airport and thus will probably be inordinately pissed off by the time I arrive home.

PS quote of the week – new feature – made me laugh a lot….
‘Frazier is so ugly that he should donate his face to the US Bureau of Wild Life.’
Muhammad Ali