Volcanos, lava fields,sea and sun
So with bike unpacked and reassembled, I was excited about day 1 of the training week. It dawned cloudy,humid and windy and as I set off it occurred to me that this week might be different to previous weeks out here. The tri season is coming to a close for many and I had a thought that I may not see so many people out on bikes.This proved true as I only saw 3 cyclists in the first hour! My first ride took me from Masdache(where I was staying)- Yaiza-Timanfaya-Tinajo-La Santa and back (59 km).Memories of the big day in May came flooding back as I climbed up to the camels, across the lava fields to Mancha Blanca.It was at Mancha Blanca where Mum, Dad and Jimmy had been cheering me on for the first part of the bike course so have fond memories here.I dropped down into La Santa village and popped into Pro Bike and had a quick chat and a kit reccie! As I climbed back out of La Santa the weather was getting hotter and hotter and I started to really enjoy the familiar roads and sights. It is a very dramatic landscape and as you ride across the island you realise that it is an island of extraordinary beauty.First ride done, I stood in the pool to cool off the legs and got ready to run. The main road through Masdache is fairly straight and undulating so running was a fairly simple affair of out and back either towards Yaiza or Teguise. I ran for 40 mins and I was pleased with the pace.Day 2 - the first sea swim….Drove down to Peurto del Carmen early in the morning for a sea swim. Found that the sea temp was warm enough not to bother with a wetsuit. Felt I was being very brave as I am not the bravest sea swimmer on account of the fish….Stayed close to the beach as I was swimming alone without a spotter and obviously there were all those fish…..Got a good 30 mins in swimming up and down the shore line and decided then I was outstaying my welcome….The bike session was just a short one from La Santa across the volcano fields (20km) which consisted of 30 mins of climbing followed by 25 mins flying across the National Parc de Volcanes. It is like being on a motorbike if you get the wind behind you up here! Once again I was struck by the sheer beauty of the place(see facebook photos) and was sad to see a pile of plastic bottles thrown by the roadside.On Day 3 after another early sea swim(where I was the only human around!), I did a drive up to the north of the island with the intention of riding home from the top of Mirador del Rio, the hight point of the north. The views from this mountain top are amazing and I went into the observation point inspired by island artist Cesar Manrique. My friend arranged to drive the car and I was to ride back to Masdache. The 45 km ride took in Arrietta, a nice seaside town-Tahiche-Mozaga-La Vaguetta- Masdache. The La Vaguetta- Masdache road is the bumpiest road I have ever ridden on in Lanzarote and it was on this road that my gear lever snapped so I rode home on a fixed gear….Fortunately the nice people at Pro Bike were on hand to fit a new cable and send me back out. Day 4 - Race Simulation Day 3.Dawn broke cloudy with some spots of rain,needless to say I was not impressed with this!Got into the sea and swam. I saw the largest fish I have seen in these waters and I so wish they didn’t scare me so much!It has been pointed out to me that they might not be so happy about having humans sploshing around in their back yards either!It was going to be tricky doing a true race simulation here as my accommodation was 30 mins drive from the beach so I drove back and kitted up pretty swiftly and got going on the bike. The sun was coming out at this point and the weather hotting up. I covered some good distance and the riding was as challenging but as awesome as ever. I did 100km in the 4 hours which pleased me and headed straight out onto the run. I ran 12km in 1 hr 10mins, my pace was steady but ran out of drink on the run and felt very dehydrated.The weather had turned cloudy once more and was very humid so great conditions to practice in. It was a tough day but I was pleased with it overall.I felt quite sore on Day 5 as I got up and prepared for another run. I had decided to run the IM run course as it would be very measurable in terms of pace. I wanted to run on fatigued legs and see how I would fare. It was, again, a strange sensation of covering the race route from May and I was reminded of the sights,sounds(and smells from the restaurants!) of the race. It was motivating run despite being quite tired throughout and I was pleased with the 17km I put in.Day 6 and the last training day I was set to do a 3 hour bike. I was planning to climb up throughLos Valles to the windmills but upon getting up I was presented with rain. I looked over to the climb and could see the top of the mountain was covered in mist. I decided on another route as I didn’t want to get to the top and descend through mist and rain which is cold. So my route ended up being Masdache-Famara-Soo-La Santa-Tinajo-Mancha Blanc-Timanfaya-Yaiza-Masdache (70km). A lovely rolling route despite the wind and rain. Famara is one of my favourite areas - it is a desert type landscape all the way to the wild Famara coast( a surf haven). When it is hot at Famara it is really hot and can be pretty brutal to ride up from the coast.However, this day it was raining and I was travelling down towards the coast. The road sweeps round to Soo then down to La Santa. The wind was pretty strong as I rode up to and through the National Park and I was blown about as I descended down across from the camels.It was a case of head down and grip the top tube!At Yaiza the rain stopped but the wind got up even more and the last 45 mins were fun!Off the bike I felt a little sad as it was my last session of the week. I love training here and training on my own all week helped me learn more about the island. When you only have yourself to talk to( and answer of course) you become more aware of your surroundings, the topography and what roads lead you where.However it was a really useful week and I hope it has helped in my final preps.
