Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

  Extreme triathlons are unique in that they require some slightly different gear and equipment to a standard long distance triathlon. And every extreme triathlon is different.  Here are a few examples from our past three XTRI events..... -At Canadaman, I was required to bring my own inflatable buoy (and light) for the swim. At Icon we were given a buoy (and light) that was returned to the organizers. At The Stone, Karel was able to keep his buoy (and glowstick).  -At Canadaman, the terrain was primarily off-road. But I choose to change into trail shoes (and use my hiking poles) for the final few miles. At Icon, I wore road shoes for all of the run as most of the trails were lightly packed gravel and not too technical. I used hiking poles for the final few miles up the mountain. At The Stone, Karel needed hiking poles for most of the run. He wore road shoes for most of the run until he changed into his trail shoes for the final 2 miles up the mountain.  -At Canadaman...

On June 29th, Karel completed his first Extreme Triathlon - The Stone . His time of 14 hours and 40 minutes earned him 7th across the finish line.  RESULTS Quick stats: 2am - wake up, eat oatmeal, drink coffee, get dressed. 2:45am - walk to transition area. 3:20am - board ferry to the other side of Lake Iseo. 4am - 5:07am: 4270 yards swimming in 1:07 (from Gallinagra to Sulzano, across Lake Iseo). 5:10am - 12:47pm: 109 miles of biking and 13,576 feet elevation gain covering Aprica, Mortirolo and Gavia pass in 7:25 . Average speed 14.7mph. 12:56 - 6:34: 21.8 miles of running and 7830 feet elevation gain, starting in Ponte di Legno and finishing at Passo Paridiso. Average pace, 15:48 min/mile.  Karel started the race in the dark. The water was in the upper 60's and the air temperature was in the 60s to low 70's for most of the day. Karel was comfortable in his tri kit for the entire bike. Only when he descended from Gavia did he put on a jacket to keep himself warm before arriv...

  On June 29th at 4am, Karel will be jumping into the water of Lake Iseo to start his first extreme triathlon. In 2023, Karel was all about off-road racing. He participated in Xterra, gravel and mountain bike events and completed two big stage races - The 5-day Oregon Gravel Grinder and the 6-day Breck Epic. Between his events, he supported me in my first two XTRI events (Canadaman and ICON). After 17 Ironman distance triathlons, Karel was searching for a race that would get him excited for triathlon training. He wanted something different, unique and challenging.  Shortly after I completed the XTRI ICON event in Livigno, Italy in September 2023, Karel registered for the event in 2024. Similar to myself, Karel didn't want ICON to be his first extreme tri event as the event is very extreme with the cold water, altitude and massive elevation gain on the bike.  In doing some research, Karel came across an event called  Stonebrixiaman  (now called The Stone). Wherea...

  8/29 We woke up around 6:45am to somewhat clear skies. We could see the snow on the mountains. It was cold out (upper 30's) but no rain. We were hungry for breakfast around 8am and ordered some eggs along with our "continental" food options. We then layered up for our bike ride. We had been following the Haute Route online (they just finished up the 7-day stage in the Alps which we did last year and heading to the 5-stage Dolomites next). They shorted stage 1 from Bormio to the iconic Stelvio pass due to wet and snowy conditions. Karel was planning to ride up and over Stelvio but he modified his route (but still went to the top of the Stelvio). I rode with Karel to around Tornante (~1 hour, which was mostly climbing). We were in good company as there were some UAE cyclists just ahead of us and a lot of other cyclists. Even with the cold conditions, there were so many people out riding, hiking and walking. I felt really good climbing and was reminded of all the climbing ...