Name: Alan Turner
Age: 40
Occupation: Accounting Manager
Years doing triathlon? 9 years
First Triathlon? 2006 Mission Man Triathlon
Your favorite triathlon? I don’t have a specific race that I would consider my favorite, but I tend to prefer the Olympic or Half distance races because they are long enough that you feel like you have accomplished something, but not so long that the training becomes too time consuming.
Meal the night before race? Grilled Chicken & Pasta with Red Sauce
Pre-Race Meal? Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich
Race Nutrition? Shorter races are usually just water or Gatorade. Longer races I will use Inifinit drink mix and sometimes Clif bars, Hammer gels, and/or bananas.
Favorite motivational training song? I usually listen to rock songs from the 90’s or early 2000’s. Anything with a fast or forceful beat will keep me moving. If I had to listen to some of the songs that are being made these days it would make me want to stop training.
Favorite mantra? “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Key Workout? The next one.
Best Triathlon training or racing tip?
Training tip – Develop a well-planned, realistic, obtainable schedule and stick to it as much as your body will let you.
Racing tip – Have fun and enjoy the day. The hardest part of a race is getting to the start line healthy. If you have put in the work during training then the race will be easy by comparison.
Triathlon literature or other sources of information? I usually read up on the latest triathlon topics using the Slowtwitch.com message boards.
Who inspires you? I’ve never really had an answer to this question before. There are a lot of people out there with inspirational stories and have accomplished great things, but I’ve always felt that my personal motivation is what drives me to succeed. If I can’t motivate myself to accomplish a particular goal then no amount of inspiration from someone else will. Inspiration without motivation makes it difficult to reach your goal.
Future goal? Currently I’m training for this year’s Triple Lakes 40 Mile Trail Race. I’ve never run longer than a marathon distance before so I will be in unfamiliar territory. Long term I would like to do at least one more Ironman triathlon but knowing the huge time commitment that it requires to train for that distance it might be a few more years before I attempt it again.