Calfman Duathlon - Feb. 8

Well, I've entered the Calfman Duathlon, to be held at Showa Kinen Koen in Tachikawa City, Tokyo, on Feb. 8.

Last year, I did it slowly, because I was not at all sure I could even finish the thing. But this time I think I'll throw caution to the wind and go for it.

I've got a new Zipp 303 front wheel that should save me a bit of time and I'm getting some good tyres (hopefully Veloflex Carbons).

As things stand I now have one race to look forward to each month - January will be Shibuya Ekiden; February is the duathlon; and March is Tokyo Marathon.

I really hope there's no snow for the duathlon like there was for the last one.

Getting some good training in

My knees being the way they are I tend to take my opportunities for good training as and when they come. So I'm pleased to have been able to do two weeks of good training.

Last week, I did the duathlon as well as a fast one hour run and a fast 45 minute run (I found the fast runs hurt my knees a lot less than slow runs - a feeling backed by research done by Stanford University).

This week I did a 6hr 30min mountain walk on Monday and a 90-minute medium-pace run on Wednesday.

I always rest a day between runs and stretch and ice after runs. I'm also doing all my running in a pair of old, worn out racing flats that have lost their padding - so I'm virtually running barefoot. I can feel everything on the ground. It makes me land on my midfoot to front foot area and take care to land as smoothly as possible. Crazy? Maybe, but my knees have not felt this good in months.

"Calfman" Duathlon at Showa Kinen park, Tokyo

Today, I ran the Calfman Duathlon (カーフマン・デュアスロン) in a park in Tokyo's west. The conditions were quite bad - snow and ice on the ground - the transition area looked like a mudbath. But the organisers did a great job of making the roads rideable.

I competed in the "Challenge" category, which Harriers runner (and occasional Namban Rengo runner) Taro Agui won - mainly thanks to two brilliant runs, although his bike leg was pretty good too.

I'm not sure where I finished, but I'd guess about 60th. I set out slowly, not knowing how much a 5km run, 30km cycle, 5km run might hurt. In the end I was glad I took it easy at the start. I spent most of the race catching people, or running with people about my pace.

It kind of fell apart at the second transition. I reached down to pull my wet socks into my wet running shoes and my calf muscle spasmed. I tried the other and that went too, so I had to stop, stretch, then try again, but my socks were very wet, so they were sticking in my shoe. I tried and tried again. In the end I kind of crammed my foot in as best I could, then headed off. But I completely forgot I'd left my helmet on! So I doubled back to get rid of that. I must have lost 3 or 4 minutes.

The first 2km of the run felt bad. Really bad. My legs were really stiff and sore. But soon I got back into the groove, picked up a few places, and by the last couple of kilometres I was doing alright again.

It was a well-organised and fun day. They have a kids race and a novice race, so people of all abilities can enter. I just hope next year is warm and dry.


Having some trouble getting on the bike and going


I had an enjoyable battle with the guy in the green jersey - but he got me in the end


There were a few guys who didn't run so well, but could time trial really well. They made us look like we were standing still.


The women set off 2 minutes ahead of us. I caught some, but the first woman finished 5 minutes ahead of me.


Tiring, I'm a yellow-helmeted spec in the distance. At this point I had cramp in both calf muscles.


"One lap to go?"


The officials did really well to clear the roads of snow and ice - the rest of the park looked like this


It's not every race you get a snowman lining the road

"Calfman" Duathlon tomorrow - and so much could go wrong

Tomorrow, I compete in my second ever duathlon. For those who don't know the word, a duathlon involves running, cycling, then running. So at 11am tomorrow I have to run 5km, cycle 30km, then run another 5km around Showa Kinen park in west Tokyo.

The problem is, right now it's snowing. A bit of snow doesn't matter much when you're running, but for cyclists it's deadly. Worse still is the possibility of ice.

Also, I did a bit of hard training last week and it has made my ITB knee pain flare up again.

That's the bits that were out of my control, but it gets worse...

...I've decided to use a pair of super-fast tyres, which means if rain leaves the roads slippery and gritty I have a greater chance of puncturing them or sliding on a corner.

On top of that I've gone and done perhaps the silliest thing ever - bought new cycling shoes for the race, which I haven't had a chance to try out.

So if tomorrow doesn't end in disaster and I manage to finish in one piece, skin and knee intact, I'll be happy.