Newsletter - February 2001
Hywel Davies' Why do it!!!

Why do Tough Guy?
Tough guy is the most fun you can have with your clothes on. A combination of running fitness, vertigo, climbing, balance and a challenge to beat the elements. Tough guy gives you several races in one:
1) Survive and get round.
2) Survive and get someone else round.
3) Try and run as fast as you can and overtake as many
people as you can.
4) Try and do all the obstacles PROPERLY
5) Try and get a top 10 finish
6) Try and beat Hywel
7) Try and win
8) Try and do all the obstacles properly using just
one rope and beat Hywel Davies

(The last one is of course impossible).

You can always run as a team and enjoy a fantastic day out and push yourself beyond all previous limits.

Why do Triathlon??
Triathlon is a funny event where non swimmers like myself struggle but enjoy cruising passed skinny guys on skinny bikes and wearing bikinis. If you are good at just one of the disciplines then it can be a good laugh. You will never win or lose a triathlon because of
the way you start in waves (sprints anyway). Triathlon gives you a training routine where gym goers learn that there is fitness out on the roads as you learn to love cycling in the countryside and swim in the sea. You dont need a gym to train for triathlon.

Secondly, there is always someone to chase and a target to aim for.

Sprint...Olympic....Half ironman.....Ironman.

I went from sprint to ironman in 1 year and loved every minute of the bike and run. Hated every second of the swim.

You can even swim on your days off!!!

Triathlon is not great for your bank account when you see some nice wheels!!!

Why Do Adventure Racing??
I believe that everyone has a limit and adventure racing will help you find it. How long you can go without sleep and good food is not something everone wants to find out but when you do you have whole new outlook on life as your daily worries seem insignificant. Learning to work as a team when everyone has a bad moment or two and a poor technique in one discipline is real teamwork. Not like the team work of some top ultrafit teams I could mention where self is the most important thing. In adventure racing there
is no "I" in the word TEAM.

Oh yes you see some awesome scenery which your mind photographs and you keep as a memory for the rest of your life.

Why do Ultrafit??
Easy...Win a HOLIDAY.

Seriously, the true test of fitness, a runner can't win, neither can a triathlete or a weightlifter. You have to train at everything to be good and then because it is one on one you have to be mentally strong. If you normally back down on a challenge, a head to head contest of lactic acid tolerance is not for you.

Why do the X Zone??
Another test of fitness but not of strength, the X Zone is a weak man's Ultrafit as everyone can finish the course (eventually) regardless of fitness level. The fittest just do it faster, but it is a good opportunity to race on aerobic machines for 30 minutes.

See an interview with Hywel Davies at www.allaroundwww.co.uk