I've received the following information from Duncan Shea-Simonds about the Racetime TriCamp in Majorca next April:
"The Racetime Mallorca camp will be based just a short walk from Pollenca. A beautiful medieval town in the North of the island. This is THE place to base yourself for the best cycling in Mallorca. Bradley Wiggins has a place just down the road!
It provides quick access to both quiet lanes and the mountains and is actually ON the Mallorca 70.3 and Ironman bike route. It's quiet, secluded and away from the melee of the busier centres yet only a short walk from the cafes and bars of Pollenca should you require a change of scene.
We will be staying in a Luxury villa / farmhouse with it's own outdoor pool. Accommodation will be based on 2 sharing en-suite. Dates are 19th - 25th April.
We are very lucky to, once again, be looked after by my wonderful mum Janet who knows a thing or two about cooking for hungry athletes!
Janet (Mum) will provide more food than you can probably eat for breakfast and supper (now there's a challenge for a group of triathletes!). Breakfast is of the “Full English” variety, with porridge / cereal and fruit to fuel you through your day's training. Lunches are typically taken on the road in the form of cafe stops where you can look after yourself. Suppers are 3 course with wine. Cold beer is also available and we operate a simple honesty box system.
We are also a 3 minute walk from a large supermarket if you do need any personal supplies.
Being English – tea is available around the clock (and coffee if you want to get all European).
Weather in late April is usually pretty predictable. Warm / hot and sunny. This year we had unbroken sunshine all week and were riding in short tops and bottoms all week.
The precise training schedule for the week is to be finalised but, in terms of hours, the week will be bike focused and we will ride most days. We will include at least one ride of 100 miles and will make sure we introduce you to plenty of the classic mountain climbs / descents on the island. Including Lluc, Col de Soller, Col de Orient, Puig Major and the crazy Sa Calobra.
You can bring your own bike or we can recommend places to hire road bikes. As a cyclists mecca - the hire shops provide very high quality equipment - right up to full carbon bikes with electronic shifting if you fancy trying something really slick!
We will also take advantage of the warm sea and will schedule open-water swim sessions from nearby Puerto Pollenca.
Swims will typically happen in the early morning before breakfast and will be used to practise open-water techniques including starts, drafting, sighting and navigation rather than just swimming 1000's of meters. We also have access to a 25m, level deck indoor pool in Puerto Pollenca.
And that just leaves running. We will run a skills and drills session. One long run to the Cap de Pinar for breathtaking views of the island and one speed session on the flat, quiet lanes circuit around the villa.
We will include a “Mountain time- trial” where you will race up the climb of Lluc against the clock. We will also run our Camp Aquathlon toward the end of the week which will be handicapped with staggered starts to have you all crossing the finish line together!
So it's a busy week and you won't want for training sessions!! But rest assured, all abilities will be catered for and most rides / sessions will include options to shorten (or lengthen!).
It's a holiday as well of course, so you decide how much you take on. But with plenty of rest and great food, you'll be amazed what you can achieve! After a week or so of recovery you'll be able to hit the Tri season flying!
So I hope that has given you a flavour of what to expect. Costs are confirmed at £595 for the week (not including flights which must be booked yourself). All transfers and transportation on Mallorca are included along with your breakfasts and suppers. We will also have support from Racetime's sponsors so hope to offer you some goodies from them.
We have 12 spaces on the camp, 8 of which have already been reserved. So we now have 4 spaces left.
To secure your spot we need a deposit of £100 by the end of October. If you are not able to attend the camp, after paying your deposit, don't worry. It is refundable up to December 2014 providing we are able to re-allocate your spot – which we don't expect to be a problem.
The remaining costs need to be paid by the end of January 2015.
So don't delay in responding – you have been given advanced notice of the camp having expressed an interest. But camp details will be made “official” to the masses shortly at which point we expect spaces to get snapped up very quickly.
Duncan and Claire.
Racetime Tri-Club."
Duncan adds:
" If you do want to start looking at flights for cost purposes - you need to fly to Palma and arrive as near to 10:30am as possible. Our transfers are by coach, so it's easier if we all arrive at about the same time, and have enough daylight to hit the roads on day one! Return flights can leave Palma around midday. I know East Mids have some pretty good flights with Ryanair at the mo. You do get stung taking your bike though!
The camp is really aimed at "improvers". So not complete novices. We have a few stepping up to Ironman for the first time, so I guess you need to be happy riding 80 - 100 miles.
Anyway, if it's something you think you might be interested in, do let me know. I'm taking deposits now and looks like I maybe have 3 places left."
Duncan can be contacted on racetimemallorca@gmail.com