Racing Qatar 2011 - Going adventure

That day after the Abu Dhabi adventure challenge something clicked in me and I got really excited about the whole concept of adventure racing. Several days of long distance racing on foot, bike or kayak through usually unknown, unexplored and wild territory. Depending only on your map and compass puts you beyond marked tracks and the whole thing become personal. I felt that this is the right sport for me. I like endurance events and I like running, mountain bike and kayaking and here I can do all. I like exploration and here I will be put exactly into a position of a scout. I like competition and this is just all about challenges J

        “So let’s give it a try” I said when I came back from Christmas holidays and I wrote down to Google search “Adventure race”. And from there came my 2011 racing plan. As the main event I chose Adidas Terrex Coast to Coast 4 day stage adventure race in England in August. “What? I have to have an English kayaking certificate for this?” I was looking surprised at the race requirements. “Hmm…what to do” I said at the end. “But I really want to do this race, so I guess I just have to get it!”. And where is the best place to go, when you cannot do it in Qatar? England of course. “But I just can’t go there only for that” I thought. “Let’s do also something else once I’m there”. And that’s how I signed up for Questars Q2, two day adventure race in Dorset on the south coast of England. “I will need a holiday anyway!” J

         So on April 14, I took my hockey bag full of sport gear and flew to the old continent. The first stop was in Bristol where I arranged with watersports coach Joe a kayaking training to get UKCC Star 2 certificate that I can ride kayaks and canoes. I was thinking that I would be paying just for that piece of paper, but during those four hours I actually learned couple of new things and was happy that Joe didn’t just take my money and gave me a stamp after seeing that I can paddle forward! So we played under unusually sunny sky with various crafts in cold and still water of a small river just outside of Bristol lined with trees and with a wye, doing capsizes, rescues and several paddle techniques. Perfect day and great fun!! After he took me to a train station and I left southwards to Dorset.

         I was lucky to “hitchhike” a taxi standing next the station to the intersection from where it was just 5k to the race base camp. 5k is nothing with small backpack, but not with 20 kilo bag on your shoulder and English drivers let me feel it hard when not picking me up hitchhiking for more than half of the way!! But at the end one nice driver took me up to the campsite, so I had enough time to put my tent, enjoy hot burger from the food stand and get decent sleep. I had some racing to be done!!

The race morning was quite typical. I got my hired bike delivered at 9am, so with trying to fit all gear onto it, breakfast, race breefing and general race packing and preparations I was running almost last to the start with no time to prepare or think about what I’m going to do there!! They gave us the map for the first 200 minutes MTB stage before, but the time for kayak stage we received after the start and also there were two additional checkpoints (which I couldn’t mark to the map because I didn’t have a pen. I had to remember!) and some additional rules announced, so all strategy from evening was worth nothing.

So I just took the bike, with bike computer fitted loose inside the map board (I didn’t have ties long enough) hanging only on two of three supports (because I didn’t have time and tools to fit it on properly) and just start riding south to the optional checkpoints. Fortunately the navigation looked quite easy, when I stopped and focused on the map because it was so shaking, so found first checkpoint and after I asked some other racers where were the optional again, I found those also. “Damn…how do I continue?” I asked myself on the second optional. I didn’t think that I wouldn’t have time to go around the mountain as the best way, because I had to be in 30 minutes at the kayak section. Simple route planning mistake. So I turned back and rode full speed to the other side of the map to the sea J I managed to collect couple more points on the way and arrived to the transition point exactly the minute my time for kayaking started. Incredible!!

Kayak was super easy on flat water and in 15 minutes I was done. I left the others on the sea struggling to keep going straight and continued biking. After some more collected checkpoints without major problems I probably relaxed my concentration a bit because suddenly I found myself on the golf Course. “Purbeck Golf Isle? There is nothing like this here” I wondered looking checking map around the spot I wanted to be. “Whaaat!!! I’m here??? Cannot be!!” and I was screwed. I kept fighting and rode as fast as I could back to find the point I wanted, but with some additional searching it took me 35 minutes instead of 10 to get there. Novice!!

What to do. I still had some time so I continued to most expensive point and was coming back riding on the top of a ridge collecting more of the expensive ones. When I got to the before last I realized  that I had really little time for getting back and not suffering penalty for late arrival. So I rode steep downhill from the ridge on stairs for people going up, joined asphalt road and was sprinting back to the camp. And again…I incredibly managed to arrive only 70 seconds late. Very strange, how can you possibly do it after 3 hours, 2km kayak and 55km bike…just strange!!

There were 2 categories in the race, Masters and Novice. When I registered I really didn’t know what to expect, how good are the guys in England, how good I’m in comparison with European competition. The criteria for being Novice was “to attend not more than 3 adventure races” which I complied with and because I don’t like competing where I have no chance, so I chose the safe side and signed up as Novice.

      And I was quite surprised when I saw results after the first stage, where I was first Novice with 443 points (out of 550) and 13 points ahead of the second. Among Masters I would be 13^th. “Even with half an hour error I came first?” I was asking myself while eating everything what was around me to get calories for next stage starting in 2 hours. “But good” I smiled. “I just keep going and maybe there is a chance J”

2.5 hour second stage was only running, my stronger discipline, because you go slower and have more time for good navigation. And exactly as I though it went. I started running in a spiral around the camp from the furthest and most expensive points around and closing in. I had strength enough so running the ridge and forest trails was quite easy and fun. I collected first activity point where you had to tie knots and also the second where I had find a secret checkpoint, which was luckily just around the way I wanted to run anyway J Just before the finish I realized “Wait, I still have 5 minutes…let’s try to find No.19” which was the closest to the camp. So I went off the trail jumped a barbed wire and was on the road where the checkpoint should have been. But which direction!! “Right or left?” I thought quickly. “Heey there it is!!” I heard somebody shouting from my right. Simple J

      I finished my around 25km stage comfortably 1.5 minutes before the clock with 376 (410) points, which was the third best score overall!! So not only that I kept my first place between novices, but I also increased my lead for another 59 points.

I was really wasted after this stage, so I went to my tent, put all my clothes, lied down in the sleeping bag shivering cold and started eating. Energy bar, energy gel, milk rice, bananas, muesli bars…just everyting what I found around!! After an hour I went for a burger to the stand and then lied down again.  There was one more stage to do.

       Stage 3 was 1 hour 20 minutes and 10 k of night running. Just before the race I bought a super powerful MTB light, which can be used for running also. So when we started I lid the forest (it really shines like a car J) and easily found all checkpoints in the best time out of all 1:01:21, also because a lot of locations I already knew from the previous stages. I didn’t do the activity, because it was something with letters and guessing a word, and I might even not have known the word, because I’m not English native speaker, so I skipped that. I was in running mode and not in thinking one anyway J But I was the second best overall anyway, I gained another 21 points of lead and I went to sleep with optimistic feeling “Man…I think I can do it!!!”

The last stage 4 hour stage (5 hours for Masters) was everything combined. “OK…let’s play it safe. Just to control the race” I ordered myself and started with running, which were sure points because I couldn’t get lost. Getting lost and losing time was the only way how I could possibly lose the race. It was not the way how to collect maximum number of points, but “What is home, counts” I ran to the furthest running points along the ridge (after the race I found out that nobody else was there that day J). But after around 2 hours and another 20km of trail run I felt I was just too tired and running too slow so I went to transition and changed to bike. I collected couple of bike points on the way to kayak transition, collected all kayak points in 30 minutes and…and I realized “OMG…I completely forgot about the activity point!!!” When I got back to the bike and the map I immediately checked where the activity point actually was. “Damned!! It’s on the other side of the map!! I was just 2km from the point during the run and it’s on the top of the ridge!! Stupid!! Novice!!” I swore and started sprinting back to the AP. 

I had 15 minutes left when I got to the top. I was not really in the mood of searching in the map for “Giant’s hall”, “Tumuli” and various ranches, so I was a bit struggling. “It’s the end of the day anyway” said the race marshal on the checkpoint. “I don’t care!!” and he helped me to find the secret location on the map and gave we extra points for completion J

“Once I here, let’s collect one more. If I come 5 minutes late it’s still worth it” I said and went down along the ridge. I came 2.5 minutes late, but it didn’t matter at all. I won the Novice stage with 454 (810) points, 94 point ahead of the second!! And then I was the winner!! “WOW!!...I made it” I cheered and opened a beer I brought for the end of the race and was carrying whole way up to here!! Then I looked at the overall standings and counted “If I had that one extra hour as Masters had, I could have collected 100 point more and I would have been 4^th overall”. “Maybe I really am quite good” I thought. “But there is still room for improvement and I can be and want to be better!!” I closed the subject and went for price giving.

It was great feeling standing there in my ENVAC racing shirt, your name said aloud, getting a certificate, winning 40 pounds of vouchers one online sport gear store (really valuable prize ;) and having the photo for official web. I don’t know if you can have enough of winning, but I definitely don’t and I’ll try next time again J

I wouldn’t mind to race the next day again, but everything has to end. So I asked Andy and Jake if they can give me a lift to the bus station and after Fish&Chips and couple of ciders and took the bus to Gatwick airport and Emirates plane back to Qatar.

       If it was worth to fly that far for 3.5 days? Hell yeah it was!! Another unforgettable memory, trophy, experience and fun. Please give me more…I’m really looking forward to coming back for Coast to Coast and go another adventure…living adventure…being myself J

Racing Qatar 2011 - On the winning wave

Short Friday Intividual Time Trials were originally organized by road bikers, but because mountain bikers wanted to have fun also, there has been introduced MTB category with separate offroad track. But one time trial showed that going across all those stones and bumps alone and only against time is not the fun we were used to, so instead of having second ITT we changed it to normal MTB race with mass start, still on the same track but with 5 laps instead of 3. And the race could begin!!

I started again from the middle, I don’t why I’m still doing that when I know that now tactic will stop me from going full speed no matter what! So with my usual speed “Go 5 laps and die” I caught Davy on the lead in the first quarter of the first round and followed him until the second half, because I just couldn’t pass him on that stony technical part. But once we got onto the second half of the track which was pretty straightforward dirt road, I overtook him and took the lead. Davy kept the pace for the rest of the lap but then, as he said “…then it was time for me to let go of the “Beast from the East”, that’s how they were calling me after the Zikreet race J So I was alone in the lead again, just passing people one even two rounds back.

“Juhuuu…” I shouted with clenched fist in the air when finishing the last lap. “Jiri..don’t stop…one more round…” scorekeepers yelled at me. “What? It can’t be…I did 5 laps!!” I responded in disbelief. “No Jiri seriously..one more to go”. With no watch, bike computer or GPS I couldn’t argue, so I kept going. I should have been dead by now, so was going much slower.

“Hey Jiri…you do one extra lap?” asked me one rider when I was overtaking him. “Hey Jiri…you do a lap of honor?” asked me David when I overtook him. And then I realized that I was right. I really did 5 laps and was sent to the sixth!! And then I got a puncture ripping the tire and tube apart.

“OK…whatever…I guess this is a price for winning last 3 MTB races J” And not giving much chances to the others. This time I finished 54:36, 3 minutes ahead of the second.

Racing Qatar 2011 - On my ground

The next QCR MTB race on schedule was the famous Zikreet Rambler in the beautiful “Film city” peninsula with high dry cliffs, rocky hills, sandy roads and plenty of dirt tracks to play on. I volunteered again to help built and mark the course so some of the technical sections were creations of my twisted mind J I arrived on spot at 2am to be able to wake up at 6am and help putting flags and be 100% ready at the start line at 8am. This was quite rare that I was not doing anything on the last minute. I should try to do this more often, because I felt great…emptied, hydrated, motivated, excited!!

BANG!!! And 80 bikers started for a 32k course. I’m very bad race tactician. I just can’t go easy, stay with the lead, see how it goes and then attack. My strategy is different. I start right away with tempo “Finish the race and die” going basically 95% with little reserve for chasing somebody who is faster than me. I push on the other’s nerves by forcing them to keep up from the beginning, which few are used to, or see me disappear, which is kind of frustrating!! I always have the intention to change this, but it just never works and I push forward as hard as I can. “I can always slow down” I say, “Let’s see how far can I go!!”

This race was no difference. I started in the middle of the field, but quickly progressed to the front, where Davy was leading the pack. I overtook him and he tried to keep up for 1k more, but then he fell back. And I then was alone, in the lead, on my playground!! I helped to build the course and I did it twice before the race so I knew exactly where to go and could focus only on cycling. Initial short technical sections I overcame fearlessly with adrenaline in my eyes and the rest was just basically straight flat sandy and rocky track, which is exactly where is my biggest strength!!

So after 10k at the first checkpoint I had 6 minutes lead J And then there was the finish, 1:19:22. The scorekeepers were almost not yet ready for somebody’s arrival, so I had time to get my camping chair, camera and comfortably sit in the finish line to take pictures of the others. First of them arrived 13 minutes after me J

Racing is the best training and I felt I improved a lot in since my first race. Actually I improved to such position that the “Weekly QCR newsletter” was saying “…and JIRI won the MTB race…no surprise here” J

Racing Qatar 2011 - Until exhaustion

Aspetar sport medicine hospital in Doha is a world class medical facility with world class funding and therefore with world class scientists doing world class research related to sports and human performance. Like the one studying effect of altitude on body performance and trying to determine whether it was your head, breath or muscles what stopped you from pedaling further. Why I know all this? Because through Qatar Chain Reaction I volunteered to be a subject in this study J

The initial session was easy and fun. I sitting fixed to a special chair and with around 20 different sensors attached to my body measuring various body function like muscle contraction strength and electrical activity, pulse, brain activity, expired gases analysis, etc. I was looking like a Christmas tree!!

First I had to push with my leg against metering arm to determine the muscle maximum strength. In the mean time I was getting “stimulations” (small electric shocks to my head and groin). “Look at the curves” said scientist Olivier He meant of course the muscle activity curve on the computer screen. “Perfect subject” agreed Sebastien. Then we moved to cycling pressure chamber where I had to pedal at 80 rpm with increasing the machine resistance 25W per minute until exhaustion. “Until exhaustion? How do I do that?” I asked naively. “It’s very simple. You cycle until you cannot keep 80!” replied Olivier. “Hmm..we’ll see” I still couldn’t imagine how I could feel J

And really…around 350W I started to feel that it is getting tough and at 450W I was just done. Breathing like a steam train I couldn’t push my legs forward. “So this is exhaustion!” I though. Definitely not a pleasant thing!! But this was nothing in comparison to the other three sessions.

Starting with quite tough 8 min warm-up we went to the pressure chamber simulating to me unknown altitude 0, 2000 or 4000 meters above sea, I had to do sprints. With resistance around 160W speed up as quickly as possible to 115 revolutions, keep up for 15 seconds, stop and rest for 45 seconds. Until exhaustion of course!! When I was done we moved to the chair for some pushing and stimulations. And guess what next? The same exhaustion sprinting again in 0 altitude outside the chamber with more “stimulation” at the end as a cheery on the cake. All this usually took around 3 hours.

Unfortunately I don’t know the complete results yet, because the whole study and data evaluation from all 15 subjects will take couple of months, but from what Olivier told me you could guess how it was.

My first altitude was 2000 and I did 33 sprints. I really pushed to my limit and when I got off the bike I was barely walking and dizzy from breathing 170 heart rate through oxygen mask. Awful feeling. After that I did around the same at 0 outside. It was a bit better, because of the altitude, but I was dry like a desert, couldn’t stand, but at least not dizzy from lack of oxygen. There I think it was really the muscle what stopped me.

The second session was at 0. In the chamber I felt more comfortable, so I kept pedaling…and pedaling…still going…pretty easy…man it’s boring…I wanna be exhausted already, but I didn’t want to give up so I kept going. But at the end I think it was a bit of my mind that said “Finish of this nonsense”, because I was there way too long and felt desperately bored. I did 91 sprints there!! 1.5 hours on the bike in the small room J But what was the surprise when I did only 14 after!! So I guess I was not cheating after all and I really drained my muscles in the chamber so there was nothing left for later.

The last one was at 4000 meters. To make the story short I did 15 sprints in the room only J But I still felt terrible. Out of breath, dizzy, a bit stomach sick…you don’t get up to exhaustion often in normal life or training and especially not four times in two weeks!! But as a “Perfect subject” I did 61 after. “This is how it should be” said Olivier and explained “Because you didn’t have enough oxygen at 4000 for your brain it stopped you early to protect itself from being damaged, but muscle was still fresh so that’s why when at 0 there was oxygen enough, the muscle gave the rest”

At the end, when everything is behind me I have to say, that I’m happy that I participated. It was excellent training, I learned something about myself that will help me improve more and have some data to compare with statistics…especially those QCR ones ;)

It was kind of painful, but you know...

“NO PAIN, NO GAIN” J

Racing Qatar 2011 - Back to the roots

Right the next day after the MTB time trial there was a 10k road running race in Al Khor compound. This was probably the only running race in Qatar this year so I couldn’t miss it.

Similar to the Dubai Marathon I guessed from the training that I could do 10k at 16km/h which would be 37 minutes per 10k. I actually never achieved this during my night runs, but I felt it was real, because I know that during any competition I can somehow force myself much further…but this is common for everybody right? The goal was set, but still I was not giving me much chances, because rumors were whispering that Al Khor community crazy triathletes are doing it at 33!!

       Anyway I geared up to the front start line in my white ENVAC racing shirt. I would like to know what the others were thinking about an unknown “sponsored” guy J

        3-2-1-GO!! I started with the leading group for the first 300 meters, but then a teenage boy speeded up and started to get away. That was exactly what I didn’t want to happen, but I had to try to keep up. I still wanted to win no matter what rumors said! But soon I realized that he was going too fast. “Wait a minute” I thought, “He has a different running number color!” And then I got it: “He is running 2.5k only!!” and immediately slowed down to keep mu goal speed. But by that time we outrun the main group quite a bit and in front was only one same colored guy giving tempo. That boy was already gone…actually only until the time we saw him running back, because he missed the turn J

       The leader was running exactly my speed so I followed closely and we finished the first 5k lap still with decent lead to the rest. I was waiting for the right moment to attack and get to the lead. This moment came in the middle of the second and last lap, but in different fashion than I wanted. One tall guy from The main group around 200 meters back decided that he saw enough, speeded up and with such an ease overtook both of us in the front. Fortunately for me this completely wrecked the leader and he slowed down terribly and I he finished somewhere in the middle.

So I was still second with a big gap behind me and a comfortably running leader 100 meter in front, which I felt was controlling the race with plenty of reserve, so I didn’t even tried to push it. And like that it stayed until the finish! I came second in 34:24 for 9.6km (the actual course length) which would give 37:03 on full 10k. Exactly the speed and time I was aiming for. Mission accomplished J A trophy and 600QAR vouchers to Lulu hypermarket we just a nice bonus!! Local triathletes didn't have their day I guess ;)

It was a great success to finish second between around 100 runners, which many of them were the ones of the best what Qatar can offer!!

Racing Qatar 2011 - Birth of ENVAC Racing

        For the Dubai Marathon and Abu Dhabi Adventure challenge I was training running much more than bike and the first contest with QCR guys showed it. So as per my new battle plan I switched and was focusing “like a pro” on upcoming challenges which were mostly on bike.

        And “like a pro” I also got a proper racing outfit J As a thanks to my company ENVAC for support for Abu Dhabi Challenge and for their excitement about my adventure activities, my brother Jan designed a team logo and we made a proper “sponsored” racing dress…and ENVAC RACING was born J Definitely good to have some sponsor’s logos on…rivals will get scared!!

        So better trained and dressed I stood on the start of the next challenge – Lusail Intividual MTB Time Trial, 3 laps on 4km long track with first half quite technical and extremely bumpy and with relaxed second half on a dirt track. We were starting in 30 seconds intervals and I was around 10^th to start. I felt strong and confident, because I helped to build the tract and had already a trial lap.

        I started as fast as I could. “I can always slow down” I said and was pedaling quickly over the stones. After 300 meters I saw Davy, the strongest rider in the field walking sadly back with punctured tire!! It was a shame, but deep in my mind I heard “Hmmm…good...now I have a very good chance J” But in got easier only in my head, because I kept pedaling still as fast as I could, which means “Do 3 laps and die!”

At the end I had the fastest time with 31:25, 7 minutes ahead of the second, which earned me a small spot in QCR history, slightly bigger place in subconscious of other MTB riders and big rise in my confidence. Training was paying off. “This might also be only a beginning” I smiled J

Racing Qatar 2011 - Modest beginnings

Right after I came back from Christmas holidays I joined Qatar Chain Reaction (QCR) cycling group, more precisely the mountain bike division. I shortly met few bikers, Davy, Greg and Dave during one Friday ride to the Firing range and jumped straight into one of several races organized by QCR during the year, the 2^nd Duhail MTB race on 4^th of February.

There were 3 laps of 6 kilometers and it seemed to be just over small hills and humps. After some bike training I did for Abu Dhabi Challenge I felt strong and stood in the front line at the start with expectation not smaller than podium J

3-2-1-GO!! I bolted forward and was immediately in the lead rushing through flat sandy road and outrunning the others. But after around 1.5 kilometer I heard “Heeeeyyyy…” from the back. I missed the turn, because I was not familiar with the route, markings and terrain and because I saw wrong flag on the other hill. I got back to the race only thanks to Davy shouting at me J But for the price that about half of the field overtook me again.

I started to make my way back to the front and then it came. The rest of the track was much more difficult and technical than I was expecting. Running steep up and down, turning sharp right and left over small and big stones and sandy patches. That was definitely not my kind of playground and for the rest of the race no matter how much I tried, and I could try much less that I thought I would be able, I was slowly losing on the leading group, unable to catch them.

I was happy that those three rounds were over and that I finished. 3^rd place in Open category and 6^th overall with time 59:29 and 4 minutes after the overall winner was quite a surprise. “Maybe I was not that bad” I thought and together with the schedule for couple of more MTB races in the near future I went home with a battle plan…”3 time a week bike training and maybe I’ll have a chance here” J

Racing Qatar 2011 - Finding myself

I know that I’m very competitive person. I’m not sure if I was born with it or got this attitude “Be better than the others” from my mum telling me that when I was young, but I just am!! And basically in everything, everybody and always. Maybe sometimes I’m not showing it, but trust me…I’m thinking about it J

Especially in physical activities, because it’s the easiest. I was doing sports whole my life, but nothing and never on competitions, although I tried to win whatever small unofficial race or simple strength challenge I got in to. And I used to take all those very seriously, because only then it got that extra twist, those last 10% and the enjoyment was complete!! But somehow I’ve never thought about getting into real racing. I was always up to any competition somebody offered me to join, but I was not pursuing it on my own…until December 2010 when I was offered to participate in Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge.

      Why this sudden change of attitude came now and not before? Because it’s not fun racing when you have no chance to win J Last two years my lifestyle and environment around me changed, I slowly found more and more time to do sports and some focused training and my physical condition improved to a level I’ve never been to. And seeing that I could keep up and measure myself with international competition opened my eyes, showed me the way and filled with motivation…I saw a chance to be better than the others, compete and win…so I grabbed it and went for it!!!

And my first challenge was not far away, Dubai International Marathon on 28^th of January 2011. And let’s face it…this was not a race I could possibly win. This would be just me against JIRI and time!! Last two years I did the 10k version and set a company record with 39:56.  I don’t know if 62^nd place overall is especially impressive, but I felt that longer I go, better I am, so after going 80k in Abu Dhabi Challenge I tried my first 42k MARATHON.

During night training in Qatari wasteland I was able to do twice a week half-marathon at 14km/h so I said myself a goal “Let’s try to do it at 12km/h…should work!”

And it worked J As always I ran late to the start, didn’t have time to “drop off” some extra weight, Ipod battery was flat and I was starting from the end of the field, but somehow it didn’t matter. I watched my speed every kilometer and constantly progressed forward through the field lined up with cheering spectators.

Drinking Gatorade every 10k and eating one energy gel every 45 minutes I was feeling great and enjoying the run. After the half turn I even speeded up a bit, but exactly as Jaro said the crisis start coming around kilometer 30. Somehow I feel weaker, closer I’m to the finish and 10k to go is pretty close…in comparison to the whole thing!! So my legs started to hurt, pace shortened, breath rate increased and felt I’m draining last bits of energy. But the goal was there and was sure that I can make it. I suppressed the pain and pushed my numb legs forward.

3:24:45 means I completed my goal, made a decent result and 124^th place from 1100 I value more that 62^nd from 3150 in 10k last year J I was happy, but not 100%, because I knew I could do better…next time!! That’s the racing spirit J