TORQ are very proud of having some of the fastest age groupers in the sport, including Chris Standidge, the overall winner of the British Triathlon Championships. Despite being awarded the fastest overall age grouper, he still thinks he can go faster and is keen to continually develop and improve! Having some of the best swim and bike legs in the sport, it was time for a run focus through the winter…

“After a long triathlon season, it was time to take a month off following the World Champs in London, to recuperate and start to feel fresh ready for the year to come. In this time, it’s always good to reflect on the season, look at what worked well, what didn’t and what you may change. Overall, it had been a really successful year, winning 2 World Champs Qualifiers, becoming overall British Age Group Champion, winning at Bala Middle and getting a Top 10 at the World Champs. It had been my most successful year in nearly 20 years of racing so I was happy, but I knew there was room for improvement and that, when I look back, my big goal was to medal at London. In reality, I had peaked in June & July, perhaps raced a bit too much and, by the time August/September came, it got to the stage where I was just getting through the races as opposed to really looking forward to them.

So, as I look forward to 2014, I am going to do some things the same as last year; try and improve my run further, as this is what I consider to be my weakest discipline, by having a big run phase from October to January with a goal of sub 1:15 at the Four villages Half marathon (more on this further on), mix Olympic Distance and 70.3 Racing, as per last year, and aim for European & World Champs Medals. Differently, I am going to race a little less and, after the Europeans at the end of June, I am going to have some time off ready to feel refreshed again for August and September (hopefully!).

So how have the last 4 months gone? The plan was to cut my swimming & biking down to twice a week so they could just tick over and to basically run as much as my body would allow but focusing on quality rather than just knocking out miles for the sake of it. I made the difficult decision to move run groups to Vale Royal having been with Chester Tri for the last 10 years or so during the winter, joining a group that made me look very ordinary when it came to running. The group is run by an ex Olympian, Andy Carter, and is full of internationals across a number of different age groups. Every Tuesday and Thursday, I rocked up at the track, got a good kicking, but each week started to see the improvement. In between, I did hill sessions, tempo runs, long runs and basically immersed myself into becoming a runner, clocking about 60 miles a week.

I raced regularly, clocking my best ever positions in the Borders league, coming 4th in one of them. Then, at the beginning of December, clocked a 56:24 at the Stockport 10 mile, coming 8th. Into the New Year, I raced the Cheshire Cross Country Champs and came 9th, giving me the opportunity to run for Cheshire at the Inter Counties later in March. Then, 2 weeks later, I had the Four villages Half Marathon; the Stockport 10 had given me the confidence that the 1:15 was on, but now I had to deliver. The four villages is a pretty big race with over 2000 participants, it’s local so I know lots of people who do it and the support is great from fellow club members. I got myself in a small group early onand sat in just clocking off the miles, faster than I was wanting to go, but I decided just to try and hold on for as long as possible. At 8 miles the tough miles start and I found myself to be one of the strongest in the group, going through 10 miles in 56:24. One more tough mile then downhill to the finish, I had clocked 1:13:20, I was absolutely made up. Over 2 mins faster than my PB.

As soon as the half marathon was done, it was time to start the swimming and biking, and to try and play catch up whilst holding on to this new run form. So far everything is going well and I’m looking forward to the tri season. Goals? To improve on last year, you can never control who else is racing and how well they are going, but I am aiming to medal at Ironman 70.3 Pay d’Aix, win age group and medal overall at British Champs, and medal at both European & World Olympic Distance Champs.
Ambitious goals – definitely, but wouldn’t have it any other way. A big thank you to Torq and all our amazing sponsors. When I get to the start line, I know I am racing with the best kit, the only variable is me!”

TORQ are very proud of having some of the fastest age groupers in the sport, including Chris Standidge the overall winner of the British Triathlon Championships. Despite being awarded the fastest overall age grouper he still thinks he can go faster and is keen to continually develop and improve! Having one of the best swim and bike legs in the sport it was time for a run focus through the winter…

www.wilier.it – Triathlon Frames
www.ffwdwheels.com – Race wheels
www.huubdesign.com – Wetsuits
www.zyro.co.uk/altura – Triathlon and cycle apparel
www.ismseat.com – Saddles
www.invisciddesign.com – Speedfil hydration systems
www.schwalbe.com – Cycle Tyres
www.limarhelmets.com – Helmets & Glasses
www.lakecycling.co.uk – Cycling Footwear
www.jagwireusa.com – Cables & Housing
www.amphibia-sport.com – Transition Bags
www.lezyne.com – Pumps, Tools, Bottle Cages
www.fenwicks.info – Lubrication
www.kapz.co.uk – Custom headset caps
www.racewaredirect.co.uk – Chain catchers and phone cases
www.shimano.com – Groupsets
www.camelbak.com – Bottles
www.max-mediagroup.co.uk – Team PR
www.joolzedymond.com – Photography