Linsey Corbin reflects on first part of season

After finishing 3rd in the Ironman African Championships, Linsey reflects on part one of 2018 and outlines new goals

Hello,

I just wanted to drop you a note and check-in after last weekend’s Ironman African Championships, where I placed 3rd and qualified for my 12th Kona as a professional. The first part of my season was focused on a Spring Ironman event, and now that it has wrapped up I have had time to reflect on how the first part of my season has gone.

A few highlights:

Rule #1 – no illness + no injuries = yay!
I spent 8+ weeks doing stroke work in the pool. This required a lot of patience on my end: slow swimming, lower swim mileage, lots of solo swimming, swim lessons (!), dry-land work. I really had to go back to the drawing board in regards to my swim. A highlight at Ironman South Africa was making the main pack in a rough-ocean swim. This was something I have been dreaming of and a great sign for things to come.
3,800 miles on the bike + 600 miles of running logged
We tried some new stuff with my bike training this winter and the numbers I saw in training were some of the best of my career.
The goal for my run was to increase my durability so that late in the marathon I wasn’t falling apart. We successfully have managed to increase my training mileage and I think it has paid off. In Sunday’s race, I had a race-best marathon (2:58) and I closed out the day feeling strong.
I’ve really been enjoying the training and process of simply checking off the boxes along the way this Spring. It has been refreshing to not feeling as pressured by outcomes as I have in years past. This is much easier said than done.
I raced Campeche 70.3 – 4th place & Ironman South Africa – 3rd place.

Looking ahead:

Here are a few things I’ll be working on over the next few months.

Increasing my swim mileage and fitness levels.
While I have shown personal-best numbers on the bike in training, in both of my races this year it hasn’t shown up yet as I have cycled well below my potential. I’m on the hunt to find some answers. As I always say to my coach – the race is the proving ground! This is exciting to me as we know there is room to improve.
I will be focusing on a handful of 70.3 races, working on that high-end speed.
I am looking at racing an Ironman this summer with a hard bike course to let my Trek bike shine.
Rule #1 – don’t get sick, don’t get injured 🙂
As the weather is shifting more towards summer, I am looking forward to logging lots of outdoor miles and enjoying time in the mountains, which is where I get a lot of my inspiration and enjoyment.

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for playing a part in the above. Now, more than ever, I appreciate how lucky I am to have the group of people backing me that I do. You make training, racing, and life as a professional athlete possible. I hope I can continue to represent you in the best way possible.

Looking forward to the next few months of training and racing! Let’s keep it rolling…

Best,

Linsey Corbin

Professional Triathlete

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