DTR Sports Management’s Paul Attard talks about his races of late:
Hi Guys,
Its been a while since i last reported in but don’t worry I’m still around and doing some racing at the moment.
Since the disappointment of the worlds in September it has taken me a while to get around which direction i take my racing. I got my professional license in October and i really wanted to commit to doing the national series as a short course athlete as it would mean i have no choice but to work really hard on the swim as this is my weakness.
Unfortunately Triathlon Australia have decided in January that they would cancel the whole series. This has left me feeling again unsure of what i have been really training for as i look at my race calender and see that there are now no goal races!
Since then i have spoken to coach Eric and we are going to do as many local races as possible and finish the season with the Murray Man in SA. This race format is 2k swim 60k bike and 15k run.
I am also having trouble at the moment with my plans to be on a team in France. I will still head overseas but i don’t think it will be for as long as i had first hoped.
Now to my recent races. Before Christmas i raced Race 1 of the Gatorade series which saw it turn into a duo due to bad weather. This race went ok for me as i was up there in the first run which ment i could ride with the leaders and leave it to the run. The last run was very fast. It was the fastest run i have ever done and after a bad transition i was happy to see myself run into 4th place.
Race 2 of Gatorade at Elwood was this time a proper Tri which was what i wanted so i could see how my winter swimming had turned out on race day. I had a good swim by my standard but was still 40 seconds of the leaders. A great transition saw me get away on the bike and ride in a bunch with some other strong riders. By half way on the bike we had caught all but two guys on the break away. Getting off the bike i didn’t feel too good running but good enough to be able to run in for a 4th place finish.
Deanne and i headed away for two weeks over Christmas and had a little break. We still trained a bit which was good to come back not feeling over weight or too unfit.
Straight into racing again and this time it was Race 3 of Gatorade which is a Olympic distance. I would have liked to do a smaller swim as the 2 week break saw me do only one hard pool session with lots of open water. I felt more comfortable out there but not as fit. I managed to come out of the water 2.5 mins down which was what i had expected. On the bike it was a reasonably tough start to the ride as there is a big run from the water up a hill to transition.
I didn’t get the wheel of Mitch Anderson who is a strong biker and this would turn out to be a bad miss. Riding in a slightly weaker group we could not get the turns rolling and ended up losing time to the leaders. By T2 i was never going to podium so the best i could do is a hard run and try to pick a few guys up from the lead bunch. I ran pretty well and pick off a handful of guys but could only manage a 13th place. Reasonably disappointing result but i did learn quiet a few things in that race.
This last week has been pretty fun for me with nearly more racing than training. I raced B grade crits at Kew blvd for the first time and managed a second place by about half a wheel. Swam the Danger 1000 in Torquay on Saturday and came second (doesn’t count though when you race in the 45-49 category)! Raced the Enduro format tri in Mordialloc on Sunday and came up with a third place there.
Paul Attard
DTR Sports Management’s Brian Fuller races strong and hard at 2010 Challenge Wanaka.
After some issues on the bike comes home strong for a top 5 pro finish.
Please find below Brian’s personal race report:
Well the day started out cold but looked promising for nice conditions to race in,
Water temp was 13.7.
Got to transition nice and early as I wanted to make sure of a good warm up for the cold start in the water. Gun went off at 7am and straight away I found my self at the front leading out. Through the first 1.9k I had just over a minute lead and decided to up the pace a little before relaxing into a nice rhythm in the water.
Exited the water to some huge cheers in 51 minutes, a healthy 3 minutes to a small group and 5 minutes to the pack.
Decided before the race I had to get out of sight and maintain a lead which I went about nicely and by the 70k marker I had 6 minutes to a group of 4.
100k mark and it all went wrong something wasn’t right in the body and dizziness set in. my alert levels were out the window and I couldn’t hold any sort of rhythm.
The group caught me around 120k and I couldn’t respond. Into T2 and I thought well lets keep it respectable and try and finish on a good note. 1st 8k was hell, cramps, no rhythm it just wasn’t working, and then I started to find my running and almost managed to run down peter by the end.
5th place overall, 1st out of the water 1st to the turn around, still happy with that. I know what I done wrong and will definitely exercise a different strategy come next race.
To my sponsors thanks very much for the support and look forward to the next one.
Cheers
Brian Fuller
DTR Sports Management’s Matt Docking talks about his latest experiences competing:
The Victorian Open week started with a trip to the Callaway Golf factory to pick up my new conforming irons. While the rules had been relaxed and the clubs weren’t required this week my own set had gone missing in action the week prior so the new set was put straight into play.
The tournament began with a very hard fought round of 2 over par. After completing this round I spent a few hours ironing out a few kinks which showed up during the morning round and fronted up the second day ready to go. The round was beginning to slip away along with my chances in the tournament. After a few stern words to myself and a more aggressive approach I proceeded to play the final five holes 4 under par to secure my place on the weekend.
From a lowly position of tied 50th I played some very good golf over the weekend to move up into a tie for 18th, which turned out to be only 1 shot from being in the top 10. Over the weekend my ball striking I felt was at its best, although I feel that I could have putted better on the Saturday overall I am pleased with the result from my position early on Friday afternoon where I was looking at having a very short week. Again!!
With this good performance under my belt I hope to improve my showing in the upcoming events both on tour and pro Am’s as the year progresses.
Cheers
Matt
DTR Sports Management’s Matty White has joined forces with Compressports Compression for the 2010 season.
This exciting partnership joins other Pro Athlete’s such as Chrissie Wellington , Tim Berkel and many more.
Please have a look at the link below for reference:
http://www.compressport.com.au/blog/
DTR Sports Management is happy to announce that Global Accreditation Services (GAS) is coming on board as one of Matthew Docking’s major sponsors.
This company will be supporting Matt in his professional endeavours in professional golf in 2010.
DTR Sports Management’s James Attard races strong at 2010 Mountain to Surf even in Lorne Victoria.
Please find below some words from James:
Hi everyone,
feeling very tender today after Friday nights Mountain to Surf fun run down at Lorne. After finishing 3rd last year and 1st back in 2008 I was hope full again of a good result! This years field however, was probably the toughest in some years, with recent Australian rep of the Ekiden relays in Japan, Kane Willie leading the strong field.
The sun was scorching above us and most people with any sense were down at the beach cooling off, but come 6:30pm, 2000 odd people were all set to tackle the challenging course.
The start was really slow again this year and I soon found myself at the front of the field. This wasn’t exactly the race plan, over the early hills I wanted to just follow and bide my time till we hit the bush section. I guess I probably got a little excited though running at the front in such good company! Over the top of the last 2nd big hill in 1st place and I was feeling really good until Kane came past and got a little gap downhill heading into the bush. It was here my quads starting shut down pretty much.
I was still moving along pretty quick but had none of my usual punch through the tough single track section, and by the time we exited the bush for the last 2.5km stretch along the road and final path section I dropped back to 5th.
Feeling like I was, I guess I was reasonably happy with the 5th placing, given the quality in front of me and the lack of racing in the legs over the last few months. So a brief break now, a chance to relax a bit and let the body recover before the next slog of training to lead me to my next trip to Europe.
Racing this year closely resembles my calendar from last last, unfortunately though I probably wont be calling into Thailand on my way to Europe as the race this year is not apart of the World Series. Racing will kick off in Spain in late March, were I’ll again be based with West Australian Raf Baugh and his family. I’ve got several races in Spain, including the Gernika International Duathlon again and this year Raf and I will contend the Spanish Championships. There will also be a few trips to France for the French Grand Prix races with my team ‘Les Tritons Meldois’, and the European Championships.
So obviously plenty ahead to keep me busy, I’m also squeezing my wedding in there before heading overseas so I’ll be making the most of my break now!
Thanks everyone,
talk soon,
Jimmy
I would also like to use this opportunity announce that I will be moving to Olympic Distance (draft legal) triathlon this season. It has been a tough decision to make, but after a lot of discussion and advice, I believe it will be the right one.
I am looking forward to the new challenge , and I am now 100% focused on my goals. I have recently moved up to Wollongong to train with NSWIS Head Coach, Jamie Turner which I am really enjoying, and I am learning a lot of new things.
As I said, it was an incredibly tough decision. It has certainly put me out my comfort zone, and I have to go back to the beginning to learn so many new things. However, many of these are things I would have set aside or forgotten about had I continued to coach myself, and would have probably came back to haunt me in the years to come. It will be very hard to leave my family, boyfriend & friends behind, but I guess this is all part of the sport, and if the move doesn’t make me faster, it will sure make me tougher!
I have my European Race Calendar planned already, and I am very excited about the journey I am beginning.
Ironman Hawaii is still, and will always be my ultimate goal. However, for next few years I am 100% focused and committed on the task at hand.
A note from Triathlon Australia :
Charlotte was identified by Triathlon Australia National Development Coach Mr Craig Redman as an athlete with a potential to excel at ITU Racing. After spending a month training with the NSW Institute of Sport program in Wollongong – Charlotte was invited back by Head Coach Jamie Turner.
Turner wanted Charlotte to complete her Long Course season culminating in the World Champs in Perth and then make a transition into ITU Racing.
Turner maintains ” Charlotte demonstrated a great capacity to be engaged within the coaching process and actively develop and learn new skills” – in the realm of HP sport – capacity to change and improve is a key ingredient. We believe Charlotte has this – along with a number of other key attributes.
Charlotte will be looking to transfer her talents into the Olympic domain of Triathlon and make an impact within the Triathlon Australian HP team. She will compete domestically in early 2010 before taking on European Cup events with and eye of qualification for the Triathlon Australia U23 Team for the World Championships to be held in Budapest, Hungary in early September.
