01 / 21 / 2010

Army Championships Seetaler Alpen 19^th - 21^st January

A few weeks before my disarmament, I was allowed to start for the HSZ-Vienna (Army Sports Center) at the Austrian Army Championships. We - Colonel Captain Laller, Lieutenant Guggenberger, Colonel Drage and I had a quite strong team.

As XTERRA triathlete, former alpine ski racer and winter triathlete I am accustomed to perform well in various sports, but in shooting, throwing grenades and ski touring I had no experience and just a little bit training.

The competitions started with an alpine giant slalom. My last alpine ski race I finished 5 years ago. 3rd place with overall (60 starters) showed me that I still can ski well.

During the biathlon (cross country skiing and shooting with a rifle), I was not spared from penalty laps. In the relay race I was the starting runner on track.

Conclusion of the Championships was the patrol team competition with ski touring, shooting and throwing grandes. Our HSZ-team finished 10th of 42 teams.

The individual scores in the military biathlon and triathlon I won. Trophies, statues and medals are a reminder of my time as a soldier in the Austrian army, which ends on 5th March 2010.

From now on my training activities are targeted for XTERRA season 2010:
03/07 - 04/16 2010  Australien, Victoria
04/27 - 05/25 2010  USA, Salt Lake City

01 / 06 / 2010

Cyclocross race in Prinzersdorf at St. Poelten / Austria

My first competition 2010 was a cyclocross race which was a preparation for the Austrian Championships next weekend.

The conditions were not unlike in Band Laaben / Austria a few weeks ago: snow and ice, however this time the course was quite flat with sharp turns. I realized again that my tires (combination Tire - Rim) are completely unsuitable for these conditions. Many falls were the result, even in easy curves. An investment in a much better material wouldn't make much sense because cyclocross is not my sporting focus.

However, such competitions are important for me 'cause you never get such intense exercises during standard training. My pre-season 2010 is focused on triathlon training for XTERRA.

After my stay in Australia (early March to mid April), I'll go to the US again for a month to meet our friends in Salt Lake City (UT). Since winter season is rather long in Utah I'll have some ski days, too.

XTERRA Las Vegas on 25^th April I've got already scheduled.

For 2010 I have a lot on my schedule - the training in Australia (March-April) will be an excellent preparation.

12 / 31 / 2009

International New Years-Run Vienna

My traditional conclusion of the year was as usual the New Year's Eve-Run at Vienna's Ringstrasse - 5.325 kilometers.
3200 runners - rank 15 as a triathlete is ok.

With my time of 18:01 (18:44 in 2008) I am satisfied. Overall, 15th (2008: 20th place) also shows a clear improvement due to my rigorous running training - in addition to swimming and biking.

The victory went to the Englishman Matthew Bowser in front of Ukrainians Babryka Ivan. The fastest lady, Eva Maria Gradwohl (AUT), came a few seconds behind me to the finish.

With my sport, I was quite happy with the year 2009.

For 2010 I have a lot on my schedule - the training in Australia (March-April) will be an excellent preparation.

12 / 19 / 2009

X-MAS Cycle Cross Brand Laaben

At -10 degrees (14 F), snowy and icy surfaces, about 50 bikers participated in this competition. Even the journey by car to the location Klamm.Hoehe in the Wienerwald was an adventure. The organizers did a great job under these extreme conditions to arrange a bike race.

60 minutes and one lap were to go. On steep uphill parts of the course bikes had to be carried. My bike choice wasn’t the best. To use my MTB would have been much better. Since I came directly from the cross-country skiing in Tyrol I only had my cyclo-cross bike and no further material with me.
I fell almost every lap at least once in the curvy descents, because my tires had no grip at all. However all falls – not only mine - were smooth in the soft snow. Uphill I was pretty good, especially in the running passages. As I lost too much time downhill, a top rank was impossible on this day.

The race was great fun, although I had some very painful cold fingers and toes after this race. For me it was a hard training and a reunion with many sporting colleagues from my days as a mountainbiker.

Cross-country ski training in Hochfilzen in Tyrol

I was told by the army to go to Hochfilzen three days for cross-country ski training.
Training started at 8 o’clock in the morning at -18 degrees (-0.4 F) which was extremely cold. My cross-country training in Styria will be continued on Sunday at similar low temperatures.
To prepare for the Army Championships a shooting exercise will be added right at the beginning of the year 2010.

11 / 29 / 2009

Cross Country - Vienna Championships - 1^st place for team2012.at in the team competition

I supported my new running team "team2012.at", where I've been a member for a week. We got first as the youngest team in the men's elite race of the Vienna championships in cross-country running. Team-mate Andreas Vojta, one of the strongest Austrian distance runners, outclassed the entire field, Christoph Mrkvicka was third

The team "team2012.at" under the leadership of Willi Lilge split off due the doping quarrels about Susanne Pumper from LCC Vienna. However the success of the team shows that it is possible without doping.

The Vienna cross country championships took place at Vienna's famous recreation area Prater.
Almost all runners wore summer running apparel.
I originally wanted to run long distance because I should perform better than on short courses. But for the team competition there had to be three starters, so I switched to short distance (3,600 m).

Training:

My training conditions in the Armed Forces in the Army Sports Center have improved significantly.

To my standard training program I will run 2x a week training with the team2012.at, 2x swimming at the USZ (University Sports Center) which is nearby and 4x early morning workout (mostly running).

Approx. 20 hours training per week are a good basis for the 2010 season. Over the Christmas holidays and winter weekends cross-country skiing will be added.

A sports medicine care is currently vacant.