To hell and back, my first full triathlon season and all that goes with it!
Steven Teeling lynch! Fail to prepare prepare to fail! Not in our back yard you won’t !

We left coonagh for the last time with the sun shinning in our eyes. The bright nights were coming in fast and we were now on our way to the dark waters of Killaloe and castle Connell. Summer was here and the triathlon season had already kicked off.

I was fit after a solid and consistent winters training. I had a positive duathlon season and had back to back 10k pb’s in ennis and limerick. A good start.
The first triathlon was Nenagh which I didn’t do because even though I had worked hard in the pool my confidence and ability around my swim was week. I opted to do joey tri a tri Instead a few weeks later. I can confirm now at this moment that I do not like pool based triathlons. The 350m swim fllaaaad me!! Nice jersey for my effort though.

It seems the triathlon season in this neck of the woods revolves around kilkee and every event and training session before hell is in preparation for hell. The build up was detailed with training camps and plenty of course work. What revolved around it was romance, coffee, early mornings and late nights. A massive festival of triathlon. The most beautiful and revered race I’ve had the pleasure to be involved in. Can’t wait for next years build up and event. Me and hell have a score to settle.

I came away from kilkee with doubts. The guys in the team were all making progress and I felt I wasn’t. My swim was going backwards and I could see everyone else’s doing the opposite. I couldn’t turn my power i had on the bike during time trials to the bike in a race. My great running from the duathlon season and the 10ks seemed to have deserted me. I wasn’t tired or injured so I ploughed on regardless and wrecked my own and I felt everyone else’s head along the way. Pure frustration all the way.

The season can be a lonely one. You spend your winter working hard and bonding with the team. When the season starts u travel together, you race together, you break bread together and you go home together. The difference is you really need to sort out your own shit. We’ve all got our own ,doesnt matter if your a podium finisher or a novice. If your not happy or not performing u need to look into the mirror and know where it’s going wrong and react quickly. This was a new experience for me and a valuable one. Yes there is plenty of advice and guidance but u got to listen. U got to react. I didn’t until it was too late but by golly Andree walken did. I’m glad to say I helped mrs pink back on track to winning ways. That is a highlight of my season would u believe?

As a team we’ve had roaring success. Rory sexton and Anna crooks being the obvious. Mike heaneys progress and performances have been phenomenal as have Dereck flanagans. dave ahern did a brilliant half iron man and lost the gut as did john o gorman, he lost a serious belly. Mags jones swim completely changed for the better over a four week period whilst I was going around with my head in the sand with the same swim issues as mags. There’s been plenty of other success thankfully and there’s more to come this year I’m sure.

Andree’s season intrigued me. We do a lot of training and travelling together so you get to know a person. Her results were slipping and it was eating at her. We all work off confidence and hers was shot! I felt her pain and there was plenty, in hindsight, way way too much post race analysis on our journeys Home. I can see why andree is a success and has the European medal amongst many to prove it. She didn’t feel sorry for herself for long. She identified her issues and by Jesus she pulled it around by working hard and and and … By Working smart! Roll on London mrs pink. Your an inspiration to us all.

I did my first Olympic distance triathlon this year. It was a great day in athy. I will never forget it. STL had me well prepared. It was emotional at the end. I was obviously tired nearing the end and thought a lot about the commitment I had put in and the sacrifices i had been making and I felt for my wife and kids. I felt I was giving them a raw deal. Selfish me, I’m up here today and i could be spending the day with them. I felt ashamed and started to cry on the run. People most of though I was cracked. I don’t believe that now and neither does my wife thankfully. Well not all the time but it puts these things into perspective doesn’t it? I now remind myself on a regular basis of how lucky I am to have a wife like kristina and children like Daniel, Samuel and Vivienne. I crossed the line and broke down. Exhausted I wept not because I had achieved a personal goal no it was because at that moment I felt selfish and ashamed by my unapologetic insistence on my training above my family so I thought.

The most wonderful gift from this season hasn’t been results driven for me. In hindsight I’ve achieved an awful lot on the racing course. I’ve a lot to build on for next season and I’m hoping to do loads and achieve loads. Most importantly I’ve made a lot of new friends. Acquaintances are now friends, friends are now best friends, best friends are now like family. All these people weren’t in my life two years ago. It is the only sport where class or creed doesn’t exist. It’s a sport where u have pure respect from other triathletes. Where clubs interact and work with each other. I love that so much. The amount of triathletes that go out of their way to support my business from all different clubs is awesome.
Mentally and emotionally I’ve learned an awful lot about Trevor Askin. I’ve learned how to listen to my body, when to take a break, when enough is enough before its too late. I’ve learnt how to be patient and to enjoy the events and training. Enjoyment, that’s why we do it!

I can’t wait for winter training when once again the Monday banter will kick off and Stephan puts the plans in place to make us stronger,faster and fitter. I can’t wait for next season so I can put it all into play. I can’t wait to start driving miss daisy (Liam Kennedy) and mrs pink from one corner of our little island to the other. Fickle about our coffee stops and where we will have our post race feast. I’m actually heavier now than I was at the beginning of the season. We seem to celebrate at every given opportunity us triathletes. ha ha ha. Especially mark fatty Jeffers.

Finally I don’t know about u all but when I put on my go tri kit I stand proud. We are a really handsome sexy team. We are very very cool if u don’t know already. As for our coach? U gotta love him ! He’s a pure diva but he knows he’s shit. We don’t fail not in he’s backyard. God bless Finn and Jen! Go tri guys the world is our oyster.