Another top continental performance from Dan

Here is Dan McCarthy's report fro the Powerman Como – Elite World Duathlon Series – 24/10/10

7th Place

"Powerman Como – the toughest event I have ever done by a long long way. I was up against one of the hardest fields on paper including 3 former World Champions and a host of other top competitors including the Italian Ironman Champion and 250 other competitors all ready to duke it out on the roads. Set in the picturesque and awe inspiring Lombardi area of Lake Como in Italy, I’d watched Phillipe Gilbert and others battle it out the previous week in horrendous rain and misty conditions. This did little to calm my nerves!

Three weeks prior to the event I was struck down with Achilles tendonitis which I managed to improve with a mass of rehab work, making the final decision to race just a week before the event. Because the course was so tough on the bike, I decided that I could still limit my losses on the runs and produce a solid performance – perhaps somewhere in the top 15. The race was made up of a 10km run, an 80km bike and 10km run. The bike course was awesome – made up of undulating terrain to the infamous climb of the ‘Nesso’ which is 13km long and ramps up at frequent 10% sections – a really nasty climb with multiple hairpins all the way up. The fun part was the 10 mile descent with approximately 20 hairpin bends via the town of Asso (the cycle clothing manufacturer).

The race day was welcomed by rain – sopping greasy roads, which take no prisoners. The plan was to start the run easy and make sure that the Achilles was not put under any major strain which meant a first 10km run in 36mins (about 4-5mins slower than usual). I came in around 5mins behind the leaders and made my way out on the bike course, overtaking people on the undulations all the way out to the major climb of the Nesso. This climb was an experience. There is little you can do to train in England for a climb like this. Even 6 max-out reps up Coombe Hill and Box Hill, which has been my diet for the past 8 weeks, did little to really prepare for this one. Up the climb I felt really strong and managed to catch the group for 10th place at the summit, making up minutes from the base of the climb. This part of the course was epic as we passed through fog line on the way up, eventually reaching 1200 metres altitude .The descent was very precarious with diesel and leaves on a few corners. This fact was placed firmly at the back of my mind as I passed another group to reach 7th place as I continued to take all sorts of risks on the downhills, eventually pulling out 2 mins on the group on the descent alone. One minor hiccup where I dropped it on the last section of bends as the road surface changed, but managed to get back on quickly with no major injuries.

The last run was ok thankfully as I managed to pull off a 7th overall. Given that a lot of the guys ahead are all professionals, I was a bit shocked to pull off such a blinder. My bike split was also 4th quickest overall, with an average speed not far short of 23mph for the very hilly course. With no injuries, perhaps a podium would have been achievable, but hindsight is a wonderful thing in sport!

Walking down the stairs at Gatwick after a short flight was absolute murder. My quads have never been this sore in my life! My appearance at the Ottershaw Surrey League is under serious review at this current time….."