Mauro Ciarrocchi

“The real race starts long before the shot”: Mauro Ciarrocchi’s advice for tackling the triathlon and preparing for the Ironman

“When I started, everyone’s dream was to be able to compete in an Ironman”: this is how Mauro Ciarrocchi, triathlete and Ironman from Brescia, president of Triathlon Brescia DTTRI and Floky ambassador, remembers his beginnings in triathlon, almost thirty years ago. A visceral passion, the one for the combination of swimming, cycling and running, and a seemingly impossible dream: to participate in the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii.

Today, after competing in 42 Ironmans, including 8 in Hawaii (with the ninth in preparation for next May!), the passion for the sport burns brighter than ever. Exclusively for the community, Floky reveals all the secrets to not be intimidated by triathlon and, why not, start dreaming of winning the Ironman qualification.

How have you seen triathlon change over the years?

When I started triathlon in 1993, everyone only knew long distances and was intimidated by the feat. When Olympic triathlon was brought to the attention of the whole world, at the 2004 Athens Olympics, all of a sudden triathlon as a whole began to seem a little more accessible to everyone. A lot of fear remains even today, but – and I don’t say this in an opinionated way – anyone is in my opinion capable of at least tackling a sprint or Olympic distance. The big stumbling block is the swimming fraction, but the distances for cycling and running are accessible to all.

How did your passion for triathlon come about?

I have always liked running, especially the marathon. The beauty of triathlon, which is also the reason why I have been able to carry on this sport for so many years, is the combination of three different disciplines, which is a guarantee of variety. When I ran marathons, if I had an injury and could no longer run, my mood collapsed. Now I swim or ride a bike and I can still do sports, which is what I need to feel good. I never felt the need to stop or stop training, despite the fact that they are very heavy. And then there is the question of travel: traveling the world to compete is a nice way to play sport!

What feeling did you have at the first race?

My first Ironman was in Germany in 2000. Crazy cold, in the evening even rain, despite it being July. After the race I said to my wife: “Never again”. The next morning I woke up and had already changed my mind: “But it was nice”. In 2003 in Zurich I did the race that gave me my first qualification for the World Championships in Hawaii. It was an incredible emotion, an impossible dream come true. So much so that I said to myself: “It went well this time, but it will never happen again”. And instead never say never.

What was the moment of your sporting career that has remained most impressed on you?

I’ve done a lot of races, but I match them more to the places where they took place than to the races themselves. Hawaii is always Hawaii: I’ve been there eight times, this year will be the ninth, and for me all of them have been beautiful, from the one with the best time to the one with the worst. It was also beautiful in Malaysia and Los Cabos in Mexico: they are places where, after the race, I spent a wonderful holiday. But also the island of Elba, where they do the Ironman in Italy. I really like the Ironman distance, I could also do it at home, in Brescia, but when you do those kilometers swimming in a Caribbean sea or running in exotic landscapes the experience becomes even more memorable.

What does your daily training look like?

I can afford to train a lot and at many different times. From Monday to Friday in the morning I swim for about an hour, then bike or run every other day. Saturday is dedicated to the combined bike-race, Sunday only bike. I don’t have a rest day, but there are days when the training is so light that it’s like resting. Everything is commensurate with my availability at that time: if I have injuries or impediments I change my training. It is a maintenance workout, so as not to lose shape.

And what about preparing for a race?

The three months before the competition are very intense, both in terms of length and quality: I choose very heavy, combined training, which I do for the most part alone and not in company. In the last month, the month of unloading, I decrease the distances to conserve strength. The Floky socks accompany me in all training cycles and also in competition. When I train long distances I always use Run Up Longs, while on shorter distances and in races I use Shorts. Since I’ve been using the Floky I’ve never had any problems with blisters on my feet, which especially at the Ironman were a constant. The foot is always rested. One night I dreamed that I had arrived in Hawaii for the World Cup and had forgotten the Flokys: a nightmare! I would really struggle not to use them now. They are addictive!

What is your first thought when you start a race?

An Ironman starts at about four in the morning, when the alarm goes off. If I am lucky enough to have slept peacefully, which never happened to me the first few times, I start the day quietly with a nice breakfast. A jump to the transition area to check the bike and then off we go. Before starting the swimming fraction in Hawaii there is a very special moment: you enter the water and soak for about a quarter of an hour, waiting for the shot. These are moments of great tension, to the point that the shot comes as a real liberation. At the first strokes the thought is: “But who makes me do it?”. Then the voice changes: “You’re here and you do it”. You think about everything you did to get there, all the sacrifices, and you hang in there. The race in the end is nothing special: it is everything that comes before that is challenging.

What would you say to a person who wants to approach triathlon?

Approaching triathlon, even doing the shortest distances, is an experience that I recommend to everyone. Swimming is a sport that gives great benefits to the body and in winter it is an opportunity to exercise, because it can be done in warm places such as swimming pools. Throughout the year you can support yourself with running, which can be done at any temperature by dressing in the right way. This variety of disciplines, all aerobic, allows you to feel good and feel good. It is obvious that there is fatigue, but, if you practice it wisely, even training three or four times a week, triathlon is a sport that can give great satisfaction, even without having particular competitive aims.

And what about a person who wants to prepare for a race like the Ironman?

When you are an amateur, you should avoid looking for the result at all costs. You have to accept the hard truth that, in training, failing the goal is the order of the day. My advice is to create a large working base, with medium or even slow paces, to create the engine. Only then do you work on quality to improve performance. It is very important to train often alone: the Ironman is a lonely race, it doesn’t take much to get bored and lose your rhythm or even have a mental crisis. It is also important to train gradually: approaching the distances of the Ironman but without doing them. And, in the end, face the match with serenity.

Have you ever been tempted to drop everything and hang up your shoes?

I never thought of giving up. I like this sport, I like this distance, I like training (even more than competing!). My wife and I have found a balance: I play sports and compete and then together we enjoy beautiful holidays in the wonderful places where the competitions are held. Hawaii, Malaysia, Mexico. Continuing to train and compete does not weigh on me at all, in fact, I would find it hard to think of not doing it. Maybe I won’t make it to eighty years old to compete in Hawaii, but the hope is to resist as long as possible.