Hi Reader,
For about six years, Rob Sears raced triathlon on his own with a fraction of his sight. He followed the nearest swim hat, tracked the yellow lines on the bike and got shouted at for swerving. In his own words, he was “thinking to myself, I probably shouldn’t be doing this on my own, but I’m gonna keep going.”
Then came Weymouth 70.3. The sea was so rough that triathletes were backing away from the start. On the bike the sun was low, there were no white lines to follow, and riders who had no idea he couldn’t see pushed him wide into gravel. On the run he missed a kerb, stepped down it with a straight leg and limped the rest of the way to the finish. After that he walked away from racing for about three years.
What brought him back was racing with a guide, and later a tandem. I loved what he said about that decision:
“The intention from our racing doesn’t change, but the level of support we need to achieve that does.”
It took him years to accept it, and he was honest about why. “I was also afraid of not being in control anymore. I’d had all these years of making my own decisions and being in control of everything, and then all of a sudden I was going to give that away.”
Getting older isn’t losing your sight, and I’m not going to pretend it is. But I recognise that resistance in a lot of athletes over 50, and I’ve been guilty of it myself.
As a triathlon coach, I was suitably qualified to coach people with their swimming. And I felt like I’d lose some of the coaching “control” if I referred an athlete to another coach. However, once I brought those better coaches into the team, the end result was better for everyone.
The ambition usually hasn’t gone anywhere. You still want the PB, the qualification slot, the long-course finish you’ve been circling for a couple of years. What has changed is what it takes to get there. Recovery takes longer, strength work stops being optional, and the sessions you used to wing now need a bit of thought.
The instinct is to treat needing more support as a step down, the first sign you’re on your way out of the sport. Rob found the opposite. Once he let go, he reckons he’s “probably more competitive than I was when I first got into it.”
Last week was about Louise Hanley and keeping it simple. This is the other half of the same idea. Keeping it simple and doing it all yourself aren’t the same thing.
So here’s a question worth thinking about this winter: what are you still doing on your own that you’d get further with if you had some help? It might be someone watching your swim stroke, a proper bike fit, a training partner for the long runs, or a plan that someone else has thought through.
That last one is what the winter base plans inside SWAT Inner Circle are for. They’re live now if you’d like a look. Find out more and join here https://www.simonward.co.uk/swat-inner-circle
Have a good weekend! And if someone offers to help this winter, it might be worth saying yes.
Train smart,
Wardy
P.S. There’s a lot more to Rob’s story than Weymouth, including what happened when his race in Nice didn’t go to plan. Well worth an hour of your weekend:
Listen to the full conversation: “The Character Is Full” — Blindness, a Broken Pelvis and the Inner Tube That Got Him to Nice
And if you prefer reading: If you think you can, you’ll find a way.
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Simon Ward
Performance coach for endurance athletes over 50
Helping you train smarter, race stronger, and stay in the sport for the long haul.
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