#goprotri

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Heather Jackson Chapter 3: Staying Competitive

Heather may have won Wildflower three times but a (self-admitted) challenge for her is a quick exit from the swim. This cues Heather’s competitive nature and gives her the motivation she needs to kill it through the next two disciplines. 

ICYMI: Chapter 2

This year, Heather doesn’t want to settle for 5th at Kona, Heather wants to attack and win. This means she needs to step up her swim game:

“The biggest thing for the pro-field is getting out as fast as you can and knowing you’re going to hurt the most in those first 300 meters of the swim. I’ve been training in the pool for that and knowing that if you can get out with that front group I can then draft with people around me. Now I’m going to attack and go as hard as I can for 5 or 6 minute, rather than just getting through the swim at my steady pace like I have in the past.  That’s the most painful part of the day then you get in a grove.”

How The Shot Was Captured: HERO Session, Burst mode, 10/2. 

Pro Tip: We swam to bottom and held our breath to capture this shot, so if you don’t have a willing and able friend, try weighting the camera to the bottom of the pool.

Up Next Chapter 5.

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Heather Jackson Chapter 4: Swim - Bike - Run 

Heather is a big fan of the “buddy system,” when she trains within her swim, bike, run disciplines (did you catch Chapter 3?)  She grabs her husband Wattie, jumps in the pool and together they capture content that they can use to refine her form, and share with her fans.

 Any coach, training mate or willing friend can follow along by the edge of the pool using a 3-way mount to take a closer look at an athlete’s stroke.

How The Shot Was Captured: HERO4 Silver, 1080/60 for all video clips in the 6-sec edit.

Pro Tips: Swim: To capture the swim footage in our 6-sec video clip, Wattie walked alongside Heather in the water with his HERO4 Silver mounted on a 3-Way for the 3rd person POV.

Bike: The Strap is a handy mount that you can use almost anywhere. Wrap it around your water bottle to mix-up the shot.

Run: Keep your running content fresh and hands-free by setting up your tripod mount in interesting locations and jog right by. Fool-proof way to get the shot.

Up Next: Chapter 5

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Heather Jackson Chapter 5: Mixing it Up

“Training day after day, it’s important to mix up my routine and have some fun. My coach and I like to get creative with kickboard drills in the pool. He likes it because we can use them to carefully look at my form, I like it because it’s another interesting angle to capture my training on my GoPro.”

Nothing will stop Heather (see Chapter 4). She doesn’t shy away from training solo, in the rain or in the cold. She explains, “if you want to be the best you have to be present and be consistent.”

How The Shot Was Captured: HERO4 Silver, Burst Mode, 30/3, Jaws: Flex Clamp.

Pro Tip: On solo pool training days, take advantage of the Jaws: Flex Clamp. Clip it onto a kick board or to the side of the pool to get interesting angles and to check out your form.

Up Next: Chapter 6 

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Heather Jackson Chapter 6: Run Dem Hills

“Running hills is a huge part of my training. It builds leg strength and endurance. I’ll find the hilliest runs and do repeats. Lately, I’ve geared toward stairs, these are good practice for [Escape from] Alcatraz.”

Heather crushed her stair drills and still found perfect symmetry in this shot. (P.S. See her swim training in Chapter 5). To capture a moment with this much feng shui, line up your camera with the natural lines in your field of view, like Heather did with the railing on the stairs. Set up your 3-way as a tripod (or practice the “buddy system” and walk away with a balanced shot.

How The Shot Was Captured: Timelapse, .5 second, HERO4 Black, 3-Way Tri-Pod mount.

Pro Tip: Look for symmetry in your shots. Using burst mode to capture multiple shots during a running sequence gives you a few more facial expressions to pick from (you don’t always look your best on your 1000th stair). Timelapse, as used in this photo, also works. 

Up Next: Chapter 7

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Heather Jackson Chapter 7: Staying Focused

“Part of the Alcatraz run course has 300 or 400 stairs, then you run through a bike path and out onto the beach for a few miles. Then, it’s back up a sand ladder. It’s intense! Stair training is key.”

During the longest stretches of an IRONMAN Tri, an athlete might be looking at 70 more miles ahead and that’s when mental strength starts to come into play. (See Chapter 6).  For Heather, it’s the chase that keeps her mentally focused. Between the hills, stairs and beaches, her training gets her 90% of the way to that number one spot - but it’s that mental strength that takes home the gold.

How The Shot Was Captured: Timelapse mode, .5 second, HERO4 Black,  attached to side of railing with Jaws: Flex Mount and Goose Neck. 

Pro Tip: This shot looks impressive but it’s actually one of the easiest for any runner or beginning to capture. Using the Jaws: Flex Mount and Goose Neck like “mounting for dummies” your kids can do it! Simply clamp it on any stable structure then adjust the neck to capture the shot.

Up Next: Chapter 8

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Heather Jackson Chapter 8: When You’re All Smiles

“As a professional being able to stay connected with the tri community is close to my heart and so motivating. Social is a fun way to offer a glimpse into how I train and what I’m working towards.”

 “It’s a powerful and meaningful for me. Wattie always gets the best shots and I love to post them to inspire and get feedback from my friends. It’s humbling to know that there are so many people rooting for you and cheering you on from around the world.”

Sharing on social can give you that added love and support you need during intensive endurance training and as any IRONMAN athlete knows, every bit counts. We love the buddy system as much as Heather and Wattie, but when training alone throw on The Strap mount to capture a selfie or we like The Handler, which is lightweight and can fit in the back of bike or training jersey.  If you don’t want the added weight of a camera on your wrist, try wearing a runner’s pack (like a fanny pack except sleek and easy for stashing all of your gear like house key, cash and your GoPro of course).

Check out Heather on Instagram! 

How The Shot Was Captured: Timelapse, .5 second, HERO4 Black, The Strap.

Pro Tip: Running with a wrist strap may not be the most comfy for long distances but for short, causal runs it’s a fun way to capture a sunset sesh on the beach. Heather used a 3-way mount to get this perspective.

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Heather Jackson Chapter 9: Werk, Werk, Werk, Werk, Werk 

“Triathalon is an endurance sport, sometimes calling for 9 hours of training a day, every day you push yourself, trying to get quicker, stronger and test your mental limits. You have to train your body to get comfortable with enduring physical pain and hard conditions.”

 When you’re in a training block you feel worse and worse, but then you get that recovery week and it’s heaven. But that’s what makes me stronger and separates you form the pack.”

Take a look back at Chapter 8. 

For Heather, Sundays are for long runs. When you’re regularly running miles in the double digits, your stride is of the utmost importance for your stamina, for your body and for looking particularly good in burst shots. Set up your camera on your 3-Way tripod, set up a quick time-lapse and here’s your final result.

Pro Tip: Feeling artsy? Take the best moments of the stride and stitch it together using Photoshop. Cut the subject out of each frame, then attach it to the background. Have Qs? Leave us a note in the comments below. 

How Heather’s Shot Was Captured: Timelapse, .5 second, HERO4 Black, 3-Way tri-pod mount

Up Next: Chapter 10

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Heather Jackson Chapter 10: Earning it

While Heather is focusing on these vast numbers of miles ahead (see Chapter 9), the last thing she needs to think about is the placement of her GoPro and wondering “is it still attached?”

“Wattie, my husband, is really the photographer. He gets creative with mounts during practice but it’s pretty serious during a race. During training he’s practicing the “buddy system” and mounting cameras on my bike, but during a race we aren’t filming. Wattie and I do a drive through of the race and then plan ahead to see where he can meet me to hand off supplies between splits.”

How The Shot Was Captured: HERO4 Silver, Burst Mode, 30/3

Pro Tip: We used the Roll Ball Mount to securely fasten the Hero4 Silver to the frame of the bike. In order for the perspective to be a few inches away from the frame we then screwed on two extension pieces while keeping the orientation of the camera vertical.

Chapter 11: Coming Soon!