The Martian, the ghost and the athlete.

The last few months have been very hectic I never experienced such struggle to keep my coaching plans up to date and for the first time in 13 years I was not able to provide a plan to some of my athletes.

Mike Flannery from Atlantic Masters jumping from blackrock in stormy weather

I always say to my athletes that there are no reasons to miss training, that you can always do something else if there is an issue with a session that is logistic, social, physical or mental. This rule could be applied to coaches.

The floods made my life impossible at home and professionally. My partner and little girl could not get home and were stuck in the village of Craughwell which was on the main road from Galway to Dublin before they open the new Motorway and it was under the water. I decided to keep working and travel from Wesport, Roscommon, Dublin and Galway and even if many young athletes could not travel we kept some session going. I also made the trip to Naas for the “Pulse” Triathlon Camp in which most of it had to be re-planned on the spot and most of the outdoor work cancelled, for which the athletes believed they were lucky....well that’s what they believed before we used the indoor track in Nenagh.

Once the floods were gone well partially anyway, I had a sit back and review my master plan, we were at this stage about 100km behind in my swimming groups, and about 60km behind on the running plans and a good few hours on the bike but manageable so far. I have been used to flooding in France and when I was a nurse in the army so was not much under panic and started to review my next few weeks’ strategy.

January 2010 (Picture Aisling Murray) Craughwell Village, Co.Galway, Ireland

I have seen floods in France and icy winters many times, but never back to back, and when the cold struck us straight away it really affect me and my athletes, my friends and so many people in the country. Road conditions were dangerous, damaged by the water, many pot holes and icy which make many a little jumpy, a close spin of the car even at slow speed.

On Christmas day I left my partner’s parents’ house and could not go up or down some of the small hills with my car. The problem is that I had to go back to my friend in Athenry for the annual St. Stephen Days 10km. I manage to go up the hill home but preferred to leave my partner and daughter in her parents which was safer than in the car with me. I did not see them for a few days due the weather condition and we had to cancel our race the next day, and when you have to inform 1000 athletes I can tell you that you have to be a brave race director to make such a decision... especially twice in a week, but race director Alan Burke managed this very well.

Going to work at before 5am Christmas 2010 (Picture S.Locteau)

I had to help a few friends with water and felt bad for those with children with no heat and who could not access the shop. I helped as much as I could, the weather even today is unreal, it took me 4 hours to drive home from Dublin last night. I do believe that the Martian have a better time than us on Mars, really this weather can’t be real on earth!!! and check the news if you think we are not lucky, other part of the globes are having the worst time ever for the last while.

Predator Triathlon club Junior training 2004, wet and keeping safe

I spend lots of time on email and phone with my athletes who find extremely difficult to train in those conditions and gyms, pool were closed or inaccessible, but also water was an issue for hydration and hygiene. People think sometimes that I do online training, which I actually don’t but I had some serious experience in the last few weeks, and the quality is not there, you can’t check physically on your athletes or motivate them as good than when you there with them. I was like a ghost behind them, emailing their plan and asking or they get on, like a little voice.... but not as a real person present and kicking their butt to push themselves for the extra bit that you know is hiding somewhere in their body and mind.

 My goal to keep coaching no matter what! Well there is no man stronger than Mother Nature, most of the club session was cancelled and the few attempts at travelling just became so dangerous that I decided that it was not worth my life. I already drive 70,000 miles each year for coaching and even if I have a few hours in the runireland office each day, the body does get tired. Today my swim teams are over 200km off my target and my Triathletes have lost a good 10% of performance. I could give them some simple plans to keep going but I like preciseness, and need to focus on what is needed to be done.

Catching up is never an option and will bring a negative motivation aspect to the training, but rebuilding up a new schedule with a mini general preparation, build one and two phase might work depending on the group and athletes. But again the athletes has to come first now, they should care what my excuses are or how tired I am, my job is to coach and this is just what they need to know.

Sebastien Locteau

First published on runireland.com 20/01/10