Ian MacKenzie is Head Coach with Durham Triathlon in the North East of England.
I grew up athletically in the cauldron that was bike racing in 1960s Ireland – Junior provincial champion 1969, training camps with Shay Elliott and Norman Sheil, Tour of Ireland rider 1970, racing alongside the likes of Peter Doyle, Liam Horner, Pete Matthews, Doug Dailey and Nigel Dean, dreaming of the Munich Olympics – before real life took over and I ended up on a totally different path. I fell into Triathlon by accident after my wife took it up in 2003 and I started helping out on the bike section…. then at swim sessions… and run sessions…. I did a Level1 qualification just to be ‘official’, did a bit more, just loved the positivity of the whole triathlon group of people. Currently Level 3 qualified and Durham Tri’s Head Coach since 2013, I work with the full spectrum of Club level athletes from weekend warriors to Age Group World Champions.
In my ‘other life’ – Before Triathlon – I was an orchestral violinist where attention to tiny details and precision in the execution are key ingredients in a successful performance that usually takes place under pressure and at speed. And I observed the crossover between these very different fields is considerable: good form in the triathlon disciplines promotes speed and efficiency, and reduces the likelihood of injury. I also observed that very often performances suffered when athletes – like musicians sometimes do – made things more complicated than they need to be. So I spent time with some great coaches who could sharpen my understanding in different disciplines – Paul Newsome at Swim Smooth, Mike Antoniades at the Running School, Lorraine Moller of the Lydiard Foundation – in order to develop my own coaching based on solid principles and good observations.
TriMack Coaching offers a small range of services, principally delivered through the Xhale software platform. Both options below rely on your regular feedback.
Mentored Coaching: If you largely like to organise yourself, but feel you also need some regular coaching oversight, or a dispassionate sounding board, this might suit you. Or if you’re starting out in Triathlon and are unsure about how to organise and structure your sessions across the disciplines, a period as a mentored athlete might be perfect for you.
Full Coaching: If you’d prefer to have all your sessions delivered straight to your calendar, this one’s for you! Limited places available.
Additional services: Swim and Run video analysis. This can be done with your own video (specific shots required).
Email Ian for details via the Contact page.