My three week Californian training camp officially came to an end last weekend. Being based at 2000m above sea level has  allowed me to quickly gain the fitness to attack the second half of the 2011 triathlon season.  Whether it was taking the Gondola up to Heavenly Ski Village so we could run at 3000m, or riding the three mountain passes of the ‘Death Ride’ which often hosts the Tour of California or just doing 6km swim sets when it feels like you have a plastic bag in your mouth – it was all very memorable.  

While the training has been hard, it has been a lot of fun. Many, many thanks must go to Kristian Manietta of Tri Specific for guiding me through the three weeks successfully. Having a coach who has previously lived at altitude has been a massive advantage.  

Throughout the three weeks we have also raced three races in San Francisco.  After only stepping off the plane forty-eight hours earlier, the first weekend saw the Treasure Island Sprint Triathlon which I was fortunate to cross  the finish line in first place overall.  The second weekend we were back in the city for the Alcatraz Aquathon. A truly memorable event and something which I was very lucky to also win overall.  
 
The final event was the San Francisco Half Marathon. After dodging thousands of runners in the first half, my legs started to let me know what the previous three weeks had done to them. I would have liked to have run faster however with all things considered, it served its purpose as a final hit out before flying home.  My full race reports can be read at  www.richardthompson.com.au/racereports

I cannot thank Sgti Racing enough for putting on an amazing three weeks. Without their support and encouragement I wouldn’t have been able to experience and train at such a unique part of the world.  Also thanks to my other main sponsor, Skin Fit, for giving me the opportunity to wear the best training and racing gear on the market. It often felt I was in my training clothes more often than not, so I was very happy to be so comfortable day in and day out. Finally, a big thanks to Powerbar who managed to
organise a shipment of product to arrive in California to fuel me for the camp!

I am also very happy to announce that Brooks Australia will again be a sponsor of mine for the 2011/12 triathlon season. They were one of my very first sponsors many years ago and have been an amazing company to be associated with.  I look forward to
representing them well over the next twelve months.   
 
My next race is Yeppoon 70.3 Ironman on 14 August 2011. While this race does not hold great importance to us with respect to our ultimate goal, it will be a fantastic opportunity to see how my fitness levels stack up compared to the strong field assembled.  

I hope everyone is staying healthy and happy!

RT