OK so another sport
that I used to take part in during my youth that I am getting back into is
Triathlon.
Last year a friend
of mine convinced me to take part in a Long Distance triathlon, his wife had
just completed the UK Ironman and during a twitter exchange I agreed to enter
the following year if he did, his response “your on”
Following on from
this we agreed that we would enter The Outlaw rather than the Ironman, they are
the same distance but it’s all to do with branding and copyright etc. So I duly
entered, this would be my first triathlon in about 20 years, what was I
thinking?!
Fortunately another
friend of mine, who had also been convinced to enter The Outlaw, suggested the
Mid Sussex Triathlon was a good short distance event to do, so I duly entered
this one too so that I could at least remind myself of what it was like to go
from swimming to cycling to running and the techniques involved in a
transition!
Having completed
the Mid Sussex Tri I was feeling a little better about the big one but my
Swimming was definitely a weak area! By the way anyone thinking of trying a
triathlon I can fully recommend the Mid Sussex, it is a very friendly event and
very well run for the enthusiast to the beginner all are made to feel very
welcome!
So roll on to July
and the Weekend of The Outlaw, all my kit was distributed to the various bags
and stored in the relevant area, my bike was racked and ready to go all I needed
to do was turn up the following morning!
The swim started
badly I didn’t get my breath right and swam the entire 2.4 miles with my head
out of the water, not a good look. I was so glad to go into transition and get
my wetsuit off and then on to my bike! As I left transition my mate who had
convinced me to enter was standing there cheering me on. Did I forget to mention the fact that he didn’t
enter? Although he did compete as the cyclist for a team!
The bike and the
run course were very windy but I managed to get round ok and crossed the finish
line in 14 hours 51 minutes and 32 seconds, I had done it I had completed a
long distance triathlon! I decreed never again!!
So when my mate, the
one who did complete The Outlaw, asked if I would be up for Challenge Henley you
would think that I said no chance, well no actually I was keen to take part and
fortunately my parents bought me an entry as my Christmas / Birthday present!
So 8th September this year I will be taking the plunge again! Not sure
my son is too happy it is his 16th birthday that day.
As per last year my
preparation included the Mid Sussex triathlon which I completed a couple of weeks
ago and managed to achieve a PB, despite suffering the same problem in the swim
that I had at The Outlaw, fortunately I managed to recover my breathing after
the 2nd length!
Oh and I have Ride
London to prepare my legs a month before the big event too! Go team Skoda!
No comments:
Post a Comment