RACE UPDATES

Well this is what happens when you're hanging around waiting for the gas man. You start booking all kinds of events including an mid-week evening triathlon, another race circuit based duathlon, and two triathlons in one weekend!  The latter includes an off-road one on Saturday and a "normal" one on the Sunday so I can get all my kit mucky ~ yippee!


GREEN = races already completed

RED = New races recently booked (brief description at the end)

1 - SPAM MTB 50k

2 - Brutal 10k

3 - The Grim

4 - Run Rampage

5 - F3 Winter Duathlon

6 - Dorney Lake Duathlon 

7 - Saucony 10k

8 - Rempstone Duathlon

9 - F3 Winter Duathlon

10 - Steyning Stinger Half Marathon

11 - Kamikaze 

12 - Kingswood Duathlon 

13 - Questars Adventure Race - New Forest

14 - The Gauntlet 

15 - Ful-on-Duathlon - Kempton Racecourse 
16 - Bolt Around the Holt Half Marathon 

17 - Maidenhead 10 

18 - Stockley Park 10k 

19 - Three Forts Half Marathon
20 - Mini Marshman 

21 - The Beast in the East 

22 - Eton SuperSprint Triathlon

23 - Strathclyde Triathlon 

24 - Green Belter 

25 - Dunsfold Duathlon 

26 - Blenheim Triathlon 

27 - Windsor Triathlon

28 - Lakeside Triathlon
29 - G3 series 10k
30 - The Bridge Triathlon

2 July Green Belter http://www.ratracegreenbelter.com/

3 July Canterbury Triathlon http://www.velocity-events.co.uk/canterbury-sprint-tri/
9 July The Hurt http://www.allabouttriathlons.co.uk/events_the-hurt.html
10 July - Tri-Challenge http://www.triadventure.co.uk/challenge/
13 July - Hever Castle Evening Triathlon 
http://www.castletriathlonseries.co.uk/The_Series/Hever_Castle_Evening_Sprint_Triathlon_Series/the_race_-_hever_castle_evening_series.htm
17 July - DB Max Summer Duathlon http://www.dbmax.co.uk/store/event_info/14

30 July London Triathlon http://www.thelondontriathlon.co.uk/

6 Aug Hyde Park Triathlon http://london.triathlon.org/ 

13 Aug - Cymmer Afan Off-Road Triathlon http://www.cymerafantriathlon.co.uk/3/route-info/

27 Aug Hard as Snails http://www.allabouttriathlons.co.uk/events_hardassnails-run.html

11 Sept London Duathlon http://london.triathlon.org/

24 Sept XTT http://www.allabouttriathlons.co.uk/events_xt-festival__xtt-triathlon.html

25 Sept - Hever Castle Triathlon
http://www.castletriathlonseries.co.uk/The_Series/Hever_Castle/The_Series.htm

9 Oct Royal Parks Half Marathon http://royalparkshalf.com/
22 Oct The Grim Duathlon http://duathlon.grimchallenge.co.uk/

27 Nov Hellrunner http://www.hellrunner.co.uk/

4 Dec The Grim  http://original.grimchallenge.co.uk/

The Canterbury Triathlon 400m swim in the 33.3m pool, a 20k bike route described as undulating yet scenic' while the 5k run is completely flat and includes a pathway alongside the River Stour.

The Tri-Challenge - described as a true test of endurance, an adventure race over 5 hours incorporating trail running, mountain biking and navigation.  Using your map navigate to as many checkpoints and cover as much distance as you can within the 5 hour limit over a course of approximately 25km trail run and 55km mountain bike. 

The Hever Castle Triathlons (x 2 - one evening and one w/e) - starts with an open water swim in the spectacular 38 acre Hever Castle Lake, transitioning into the cycle which will take place around a 20km circuit through the High Weald of Kent an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with two laps for the Olympic distance. The run circumnavigates the estate and award winning castle grounds before making the dash to the finish beside the lake.

DB Max Duathlon  is based at the famous Castle Combe race circuit. Safe, traffic-free (well you would hope so) duathlon racing at it’s best, with wide, smooth, tarmac roads to cycle on and a flat, predominantly on-road run route.


Cymmer Afan Off-Road Triathlon is unsurprisingly, off road and requires a mountain bike.  I've had a few days mountain biking in this area before a couple of years ago and the Afan Valley was described as one of the steepest valleys in the Welsh valleys so an ideal place for mountain biking.  South Wales is also the place that I had a DNF after an event!  So unfinished business..... 

RACE 30 - THE BRIDGE TRIATHLON - 26 June

So car packed (all except the Prostate Cancer shirt which needed a quick rinse and dry overnight), alarm set for 4am and an early night.  Up at the crack of dawn for a quick breakfast and then off around the South Circular to the A2 and out of the SE of London. Traffic unsurprisingly light so reached Dartford just after 5am. Fortunately I'd followed the race instructions and came off the M25 at junction 1a as the bike course for the event was actually on the dual-carriageway around Dartford so there was no access any other way. Quite a few competitors reached the registration area a bit flustered as they had been following sat-nav directions ~ which of course didn't take into account road closures.  



We parked up on one of the industrial estates service roads and made our way to transition to rack our bikes etc.  One thing quickly became apparent. A low lying estuarine area, adjacent to remnant marshes, with areas of standing water and shallow lakes, with a warm humid morning equates to one thing. Hoards of mosquitoes!  One thing I hadn't thought to pack was insect repellent ~ yet another lesson (painfully) learnt!

Found my pre-race cuppa and took some photos.  Longish views to the Dartford Crossing (more information at the end), pylons everywhere because dominating everything was the Littlebrook Power Station.  According to the information on Wikipedia it has the forth tallest chimney in Britain (215m or 715ft).  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Littlebrook_Power_Station )


The racing started at 6:30 with the first of three waves of Olympic distant triathletes (1500m swim, 40km bike and 10km run) while we were due to start at 7:25.  Wandering down to the start got chatting with fellow competitors along the lines of which races have you/are you doing; does the swim look awfully long to you? how many laps are we meant to do on the bike? .... and so on.


Got talking to a really nice guy about what exactly we were doing here in the middle of an industrial estate, early Sunday morning being feasted on by insects and soon to plunge into a rather muddy looking lake. We were given our race briefing at which point the race organiser dropped a couple of bombshells. He explained rather gleefully that the swim was actually 800m not 750 due the layout of the lake and the bike ride (as some of had gather from the fact that the 40km races were doing seven laps of the course while we were doing four) meant that the cycle was also long being actually nearer 24km long. That only left the run which he assured us was the right length though there were some highly sceptical glances. However without further ado we all slithered down the bank and into the lake with the mud/sediment (or at least I hope it was) squeezing up between my toes. At this point I wondered whether I should have strapped the blisters from yesterday, but knowing what happened last time I had decided not to.

Finding my natural position near the back I noticed that at least two of the men and one of the women hadn't bothered at all with wetsuits ~ a sure sign that the open water swims were getting warmer, comparatively that is.  Then it was off for a 800m ~ steady breast stroke as per usually, keeping pace with the slower front crawl swimmers.  It was actually quite enjoyable, the water though murky didn't give the impression of being dirty, the wave was a nice size so there wasn't much congestion around the turn buoys, the views were OK as you were low in the water you mainly saw reed-lined banks ~ all-in-all really not unpleasant!    



Then up a floating ramp with a helping hand from a marshal (no being bodily hauled out like last week) and a trot to transition.  On with the bike gear, not a lightning change in my case, and onto the bike.  The bike course as I'd mentioned was one half of a dual-carriageway with a number of roundabouts to negotiate.  The inclines were slight - merely a single change of gear down - making for potentially very fast times.  I'd been eye-balling some of the kit in the transition while waiting for the start of my race and there were some very serious speed machines.  After a lap I realised I was going roughly the same speed as a couple of others and a race ensued.  I'd take them on the inclines, one or other would take me on the roundabouts or flat sections.  I really got into this private race almost to the exclusion of all else until someone bellowed "you expletive cheating doubts on my legitimacy - stop expletive drafting!" 


Unfortunately I realised that is exactly what we had done in effect.  Under British Triathlon Federation (BFT) most amateur races are non-drafting and as I noted at the Lakeside race (number 28) you get penalised for doing so. The envelope as they call it, is 7m behind the cycle in front and 3m to the side.  The only time you are meant to go into this envelope is when you are overtaking.  We'd been cycling no more than 2m back from each other so effectively had been gaining an advantage. Needless to say I slowed and took the remaining laps a lot more carefully.  Another lesson learnt ~ it isn't a cycle race, it is a time trial and you shouldn't rely on others to pace yourself.


I must admit I found the whole incident upsetting and ignorance certainly isn't a defence as I knew the rules, I just got distracted. The whole thing preyed on my mind even after the run so I went and found a marshal and 'fessed.  I think he was a bit surprised but was very kind and understanding and agreed to get the race organiser so I could tell him.  If anything he was even kinder and more understanding, and explained that while I had been stupid, they didn't have race umpires out on the course as due to the number of cyclists it was actually impossible to apply the non-drafting rules rigidly.  Its a bit like driving along a motorway.  If you leave the distance you are meant to from the car in-front, someone will pull in, meaning that you are constantly having to slow to keep the right distance.  This isn't really feasible if you are trying to go as fast as you can. So while very appreciative of the sympathy and understanding received ~ certainly lesson learnt!

Back to the race, off the bike and into run gear.  The transition area was congested and I found  that the neighbouring competitor had inadvertently covered my running shoes and socks with his wet suit - result - wet shoes and socks.  So not a speedy change, dragging wet socks on isn't easy and I decided they were a necessity to protect my blisters.  By the time we started the run, the sun was out and it was getting pretty toasty.  The run route was basically along some of the estate - mainly in the areas where the estate construction was on hold so it wasn't the most photogenic. I think this is expressed quite well by the professional photographer (Sussex Sport Photography - who incidentally did the photography for race 29 amongst others) who wrote on his blog "For those of you interested and looking for your pictures from the latest Bridge Triathlon (which the web analytics says many of you are) - sorry but we agreed late on with John the race director not to cover the race, as all the others we have covered there haven't sold. As one person on tri-talk said last year - "It's on an industrial estate and not very pretty - why would I want a photo of that?" - so point taken. And - since last months has also not sold, (despite hiding the industrial estate) we would be silly to push the point." Which about sums it up. So a hot run which like the bike was quite congested with no idea whether you were passing or being passed by someone in your race or one of the earlier waves. At least on the run I couldn't be accused of cheating for drafting.  In actual fact there was one runner I started keeping pace with but after a stern talking to myself, upped the pace and found my pace and not someone else's.


Then after talking to the race director, packed the car and was off home.  Again pretty light traffic, well it was still before 10am.  So home again for shower, Sunday papers and some quality sofa time.


RESULT: 17th out of 71 in a time of 1:27:33


As its name suggests, Dartford was once a fording place over the River Darent where it crossed the road from London to the Kent coast. The River Darent is a Kentish tributary of the River Thames and its name is believed to be from a Celtic word meaning 'river where oak-trees grow'. North of Dartford the Darent receives the waters of the River Cray from the west as it passes through Dartford Marshes and Crayford Marshes, where it forms a boundary between Greater London and Kent.

Dartford Marshes are a fragment of marshland that once stretched all the way along the Thames estuary. What remains is a collection of arable fields, grazing land, motorcycle trails and scrubland criss-crossed by drainage ditches. Dartford Creek (River Darent) meets the River Thames and there are some mud flats exposed at low tide.


Quite a surprising selection of birds occur at this somewhat small area of degraded habitat, particularly during the spring and autumn migratory periods, although a good number of species winter here too. Breeding birds are restricted to mainly common species although Black Redstart and Peregrine Falcon have both bred at Littlebrook power station.

You can see from the image the lake we swam in (extreme left) and the dual carriageway we cycled on (bottom of picture). The buildings are finished but the gaps are still there.  The entrance to the tunnel with a park is visible to the left of the bridge.  The oil tanks are for the power station which is just off picture to the left. Historical background can be found ~ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dartford_Crossing 
Some interesting information about the bridge itself is at ~  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth_II_Bridge For instance that on completion, the bridge was Europe's largest cable-supported bridge. As of 2010 by main span length it is the second largest cable-stayed bridge in the UK behind the Second Severn Crossing (6 m longer and opened in 1996) and the 44th largest cable-stayed bridge in the world.

RACE 29 - RUNNERS NEED G3 SERIES - 25 June

Now this race is a bit of a faux pas.  I decided with the summer upon us (yes rain, high winds ~ well it is Wimbledon fortnight so what do you expect?) that I should begin to pack a few more races in.  So this week I'd planned for a nice 10k run through the North Downs ~ hilly but beautiful, and then a triathlon not that far away in Dartford.  No long distances to travel, easy to get to ~ what could go wrong?  What I'd failed to do was check the times of the events.  The 10k was  at seven pm not am as I'd expected and the triathlon started at seven in the morning the following day.  So instead of having 24 hours to recover, I'd managed to book two events in 12 hours.  Whoops ~ what a Muppet!!


Oh well nothing to be done about it so a little about the race itself.  It is part of the Runners Need (running shop chain that acts as sponsors) G3 (no I've no idea what it stands for) series.  It starts and finishes at Newlands corner, SE of Guildford which is at the heart of the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.  The route covers the scenic and beautiful countryside following forest trails and woodland sandy tracks, exploring the north side of the downs, weaving through the bracken tracks and over some hills. The route is on; http://connect.garmin.com/player/85366690 The G3 series as a whole "boast hills, mud, sand and more hills! Expect some pain..." And yes it lived up to expectations on that front!

The following information is from Surrey Wildlife Trust.  Newlands Corner is a popular reserve with superb views of the surrounding countryside. There are 103 hectares (255 acres) of open chalk downland and peaceful woodlands to explore. The woodlands here are mixed, with some deciduous trees like oak and birch, plus evergreen yew. Some of the yew trees are hundreds of years old. The woods shelter roe deer and are home to green woodpeckers, nuthatches and tawny owls.

Newlands Corner lies on the chalk ridge of the North Downs at a height of over 170m (500ft). The Downs command fine views across the Weald to the ridge of the South Downs. Below the slope from Newlands car park lies the village of Albury.

In spring and summer, the chalk grassland is a spectacular carpet of wild flowers. In the past the grasslands were grazed, and nowadays they are mown once a year after the plants have set seed. This keeps the grassland open and stops scrubby plants invading.  It also forms part of the North Downs Way. 


About two miles to the east lies the Silent Pool, in a shady hollow surrounded by box trees. It was  probably an old chalk quarry fed by underground springs and would have been a precious source of pure water in days gone by. The pool and nearby Sherbourne Pond became home to many different species of aquatic life and one can often glimpse the blue flash of a kingfisher as  it darts across the water. More recently the pool has had a tendency to dry out due to the springs  feeding the Pool suffering from the lower than average annual rainfall. 


Silent Pool has always been a popular place to visit and many feel an eerie stillness looking out over the still water surrounded by the evergreen box trees. "Legend has it that this is due to the fate of a woodcutter’s daughter who was surprised by a nobleman on a horse as she bathed in the pool. Having failed to lure her to the bank, he rode his horse into the water and caused the girl to move out to deeper water where she drowned. When the woodcutter returned and found her body, he also found the nobleman’s hat floating on the water. It bore the crest of none other than Prince John!"  There is also a link to Agatha Christie as during her disappearance her car was found in the car park at the Silent Pool. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_Christie#Disappearance

Drove Road (where we actually park) is also a fairly good site for amateur astronomy as it is one of the closest 'dark sky' sites to the centre of London. With a downhill ridge facing south, you can see constellations such as Orion and Gemini in winter. Once or twice a year the Guildford Astronomical Society and other local societies hold public events at Newland's Corner with about 25 telescopes and 150 members of the public in attendance (see their website for details http://www.guildfordas.org/)


These reserves are privately owned by the Albury Estate. Surrey Wildlife Trust manages the area under an access agreement between the Albury Estate and Surrey County Council. http://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/reserves/show/8


While 'googling' I also found this ~ http://www.boxertrix.com/ which is the UK home for riders of BMW's sporty boxer motorcycles.  It seems that is a popular meeting spot as "quite a lot of old classic bikes congregate at Newlands Corner. The average age of the bikers here also tends to be a bit higher than those who meet down the road at Box Hill. It's not an exclusively biker spot, so you get lots of families walking or bicycling through the hills. On site there is a popular cafe selling a range of hot and cold drinks and food. The egg, bacon and tomato roll is a classic of it's kind. There are several picnic benches near the cafe, or you could go and sit on the hill to the south of the car park admiring the view whilst scoffing your breakfast".  Maybe if I have another mid-life crisis I should take up this instead ~ it'll be a little less energetic!


Finally, back to the race.  Saturday started as humid and overcast, but once the sun came out in the afternoon it soon began to heat up and became hot and humid ~ perfect race conditions ....not!  The thermometer was saying 25c with hardly a breath of a breeze.  As I wasn't sure about the traffic on a Saturday afternoon I set off in plenty of time knowing that I could always have a pre-race walk in the beauty spot.  Blasting down the A3 (keeping within all the speed limits obviously) I got to Newlands Corner with an hour and a half to spare due to light traffic.  They were just setting up the venue so I had a little toddle and took a few photos of the magnificent views.  True to recent form I'd forgotten something ~ this time any liquids.  Knowing that there was a shop on site I hadn't bothered to stop on the way which was a mistake as it wasn't open.

Very friendly organisational set up with the three ladies giving out the timing chips and race numbers also getting pre-race nerves as they were taking part too.  Then at 7pm we were off. The course was deceptive, as it was a gentle downhill run over pretty firm ground, turn left for a steep-ish section and then back along the side of the valley following the contours. I think the ease of the start caught some people out as they went off at some pace and faded quite badly on the first up hills.  Down into the bottom of the valley and then the first of the hills. This was steep but along reasonable firm ground before crossing Guildford Lane and then the pain really began.  It was then onto loose sandy trails, very steeply up hill.  I remember these from the 'Hard of Snails' race I did last year and will be doing again in August. They are really energy sapping and many people resorted to walking up. This is St Martha's Hill which is surmounted by a church of the same name.

St Martha's Hill is a prominent hill on the Greensand Ridge providing good views of Newland's Corner and on a clear day, you can see eight counties. The site contains several Megalithic and Neolithic artifacts, dating from as far back as 3500 BC. There are five, barely discernible, circular banks with external ditches which have been declared Scheduled Ancient Monuments by English Heritage.

There is a traditional belief that the original name of this hill was Saints and Martyrs Hill, the martyr being St Thomas of Canterbury. St Martha's Church (also known as St Martha-on-the-Hill) sits on the top of the hill and is accessible only by foot. It lies on the Pilgrims' Way. Parts of the structure have existed since the 12th century and it may have been built as a landmark or beacon to assist travellers. Its current dedication to Saint Martha is one of the few in England. 

The sandy hillside is clothed in woodland. Part of the 60 hectare site has a rare mixture of plant species and is designated a Site of Special Scientific interest. There is also an area called the Arboretum where, in 1900, the owners of the Albury estate planted exotic cedars, spruces and other softwood trees. On hot summer days, this hill is a place to catch a glimpse of Adder snakes which, though poisonous, are more afraid of us than we are of them and will quickly try to get away if they sense our presence.  More information on the Surrey Wildlife Trust and Wikipedia:  http://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/reserves/show/77 & 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Martha's_Hill

Needless to say none of this was making much impression as I struggled up.  Mercifully there was a water station at the top as I was dripping at this point (I know, too much information....)  Then it was down the other side back into the valley and then ~ you've guessed it straight back up the other side.  I saw some evidence of the work the wildlife trust are doing, some recently and beautifully laid hedges.  Spurred on by friendly marshals with a not entirely accurate exhortation of it being the final hill, we passed the 7km mark.  Basically the remainder was uphill, but more of the incline range of steepness rather than the full-blown serious gradient.


Crossed the line with a bit of a whimper, just outside the 50 minutes.  There were some remarkably fresh looking finishers already there but as more and more crossed the line, they looked a lot more like I felt ~ totally wrung out!  A opportunistic ice cream van had turned up so it was an ice lolly which cooled me down a little.  Had to sit on a tarpaulin on the way home as I was so sweaty, arriving back at 9:15. Jump into the shower (pure bliss), quick meal, pack the car for the following day (this time using a list), set the alarm for 4am and into bed by 10:30.    

RESULT: 24th out of 89 in a time of 50.03

PS ~ just found out they do free downloads of your pictures - amazing value!  Some of the events photographers charge up to £12 per image whereas this event only cost £16 including photos! 

RACE 28 - LAKESIDE TRIATHLON - 19 June

This event is based at the Lakeside Shopping Centre in Thurrock which is at the northern end of the Dartford Crossing of the M25.  Doing a triathlon in a shopping centre, was I felt, going to be a novel experience and so it proved.  A bit of background.  The shopping centre was opened in 1990 by Princess Alexandra.  Lakeside Shopping Centre (so called I imagine because it is next to a lake) - together with the adjoining retail park - forms one of the largest shopping areas in Europe.  Built on the site of a former chalk quarry (in that respect, like  Bluewater in Kent), Lakeside acted as a catalyst for development in the local area. The regional shopping centre quickly became a success, attracting high profile stores (M&S, Debenhams.....) and plenty of shoppers - on average 500,000 visitors per week.  Lakeside underwent a major refurbishment in 2005 which saw the centre transformed into a lighter, airier place to shop. The Boardwalk, opened in 2007, introduced a waterfront leisure area offering, with a host of restaurants, Vue cinema and a play centre.  Believe it or not, until this had been built, the "shopping experience" had totally ignored the fact it was next to a lake.  I suppose they didn't want to distract the victims - I mean 'customers', from extracting the maximum amount of cash.  

The shopping centre is the seventh largest in Britain with 1,434,000 sq ft (133,200 m²) available as retail floorspace (the Metro Centre in Gateshead, after its expansion in 2004, is the largest). There are over 250 shops, of which there are 4 anchor stores, 50 cafes and restaurants and a 26-acre (110,000 m²) lake named Alexandra Lake ~ presumable named after the Princess (royal sucking-up!) and where you've guess it we swim.  You can see it in the aerial shot  ~ where we park is in the top right car park, whereas registration and all the organisational 'stuff' is by the lake next to that 'Y'-shaped pier. The lake also has a certified diving school complex - so I guess its still pretty deep? (See for more details http://www.lakesidewatersports.co.uk/#/about-us/4534185213 whereas if you want to know more shopping centres (well you might?) have a look at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakeside_Shopping_Centre).


Packed everything the night before as it was going to be an early start.  Had a nagging feeling of forgetting something however.  Distracted myself watching Alistair Brownlee's win at the Kitzubuhel Triathlon trying to pick up some tips other than just go very fast and a "Skills for Thrills" DVD ~ explaining how to master mountain biking skills which considering the amount of times I've fallen off is no bad thing.


Woke, breakfasted and left the house 5:15.  Completely forgotten about the nagging feeling from the night before pretty much going in to automatic mode.  Bit too complacent as I later found out.   Basically the drive is over Tower Bridge, turn right onto the A13 and keep going to the shopping centre.  Lucky the route was so easy as the low morning sun made it impossible to see any of the road signs. It didn't however totally hide the delights of Dagenham ~ still very much Ford dominated, with massive factories and sheds with line upon line of pylons marching across the landscape. 

Then on to the contrast of Rainham, which I know for two things (there's probably a lot more going for it though)   It is the site of a massive landfill site accepting a vast amount of London's rubbish (around 1.5 million tonnes of waste and recyclables per annum) as it is conveniently on the River Thames.  It has been in existence for over 150 years and is 177 hectares in size.  The other thing is the marshes.  These are one of very few ancient landscapes remaining in London, these medieval marshes right next to the River Thames were closed to the public for over 100 years and used as a military firing range.  The RSPB acquired them in 2000 and set about transforming it into an award winning nature reserve (see http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/r/rainhammarshes/ ).  


Reached the shopping centre only to be stuck with a small convoy of cars all trying to find our way into the car park. We could see fellow triathletes but couldn't find how to get there.  Finally found someone to ask and one of the automatic barriers had been unlocked and was the way in ~ a sign would have been kind of nice?  Unpacking, discovered the first thing I'd forgotten ~ my track pump.  I wasn't too concerned as although the rear tyre could do with a few psi I was sure to be able to borrow one. Followed other competitors to the registration area (again lack of signs) so it was a bit of a wander through the bus station, down a service road, across a car park ~ shopping centres really don't like pedestrians wandering around outside of the confines of the shopping area.  What did it look like - well you know in the 80's when everything was build with striped brickwork and some overbearing glazing - well that was it.  Large stripes of buff and red brick on massive blank windowless walls with the occasional oversized greenhouse arrangement as an entrance.  The bus station was if anything worse - built at the height of the "Thatcher years", public transport was obviously seen as something almost undesirable!  


Joined the queue for registration.  To be honest it was a bit ragged, plenty of people doing 'stuff' but not getting through many competitors.  They seemed to be more concerned with putting the freebies in the 'goody bag'.  Slight digression, this was probably the least tri-specific freebies I'd had for race.  Plastic chopsticks, one of those hand flannels in foil that you get given after a meal, a take a way menu for Wagamma's - then the penny dropped. Wagamma's and Decathlon (a sporting mega-store) both had outlets at Lakeside and were the main sponsors - duh!  


We also got a technical t-shirt but again plastered with sponsors logos - never mind a good one to use in the gym!  I'd got to registration pretty much as soon as it opened at 6am but it took 20 minutes to go through the process.  It was at this point I'd remembered the second thing I'd forgotten ~ my race belt.  As a result I had to pass over 50p for safety pins to pin my race numbers to my top.  The line by the time I'd finished was stretching way back ~ no way they'd all get through the process before the start time.  And so it proved the race started late.


Into transition to rack the bike and unpack the gear.  This was the point I realised I hadn't packed a towel to lay my kit out of and dry the feet prior to the bike section.  Forgetting three things, fortunately none of them absolutely critical, for a race is unprecedented!  Complacency or just senility setting in!  I can see why tri-mags etc. recommend you have a list you tick off as you prepare ~ advice I'd poo-poohed until now.  I'm going to be changing my pre-race habits now! 


Sorting myself out I decided to ask the Decathlon stand whether I could borrow their pump for a few extra psi in the rear tyre.  Bad mistake!  Their pump didn't like my short valves and instead of putting air in - let the tyre down. So swapped my inner tube for my spare which had a longer valve - no luck.  Then the guys on the stand offered me a new inner with a even longer valve which we fitted and promptly punctured!  They then gave me yet another one and this one we managed to pump up.  So many thanks to the guy on the Decathlon stand for two inner tubes and infinite patience with an increasingly stressed competitor - it was very nearly a DNS (did not start) after my name!  Another reason for my new resolution to have all my own kit with me - at least I know how to use it.


Then it was on with the wetsuit over a timing chip the size of a matchbox.  That was going to prove problematic I thought and I was right!  Then the walk to the other end of the lake where the swim would start  passed registration where there was still a  long queue! Got chatting to another guy on the long walk about the things we get up to on Father's Day - his wife and kids had elected not to get up at the crack of dawn.  Then shoes into the bag provided to be lobbed into the back of a white van.  Gulp! Hadn't realised it would be so cavalier as my glasses were in my goggle case in the bag.  My fellow competitor commiserated and suggest that potentially driving home with my swimming goggles on, even if they were prescription, might, just might prove to be difficult to explain if stopped.  Oh well, no point in worry about then as we were now having the race briefing. A description of the swim course, how many laps on the bike and run, and their routes.  This was all being relayed to us by the quietest megaphone in the history of megaphones - ever!


I was in the forth and final wave of the morning, again in a pink swim hat.  This time the wave consisted of 50+ i.e. aged males, and all the women.  Presumably we're considered a) slower b) less  competitive and c) possibly more gentlemanly - so we wouldn't swim over the ladies, kick them in the head, elbow them, knock their goggles off etc. which is all apart and parcel in a mass start in an open water swim.  And believe it or not this proved to be the case.  I even heard someone apologising during the swim for getting in the way!  


One lady, who could not stop squealing as the cold water penetrated her wet suit (the secret is of course is to get water between you skin and suit as soon as possible so you get a warm layer quickly) resulted in the whole wave having a fit of the giggles.  The increasingly exasperated starter - he of the quietest megaphone in the history of megaphones ~ ever, resorted to claiming that women could never keep quiet.  This resulted in him getting a good splashing to rousing cheers.  I'd already discussed, waiting for the klaxon to go off, my intended race tactics with another old codger.  He was delighted that I had every intention of starting from the back, letting the ladies go first and then proceed with my 'serene' style of breaststroke.  This we felt was far more 'gentlemanly' and he said he had every intention in joining me in this approach.            


So 750m of serene if slow, swimming later we were faced with the swim exit.  While we had entered the swim down a gentle slipway, we were literally having to be hauled out of the dock by three strapping blokes as the dock edge was about 3 feet above the water with no steps or anything.  The blokes were hauling the ladies out with quite a lot on enthusiasm - less so with us oldsters - maybe because we were heavier?  Having to do that for nearly 300 competitors though is impressive workout!


Then it was a 250m flat (unlike Blenheim which was uphill) dash to the transition.  Although it wasn't exactly a dash as all the marshals were urging us NOT to run as the wooden dock edge was very wet and slippery from all the swimmers passing along it.  Bit of a disadvantage in a race where you're meant to be going fast - possibly more matting like at Blenheim might have been a good idea? 


Made it to transition without mishap and then spent a couple of frustrating minutes trying to wrestle the wetsuit over chip.  Finally got into all my bike stuff remembering not to tighten my bike shoes up too much this time.  This was because of what had happened the week before at Windsor.  I found that I was half way through the bike stage and one of my feet was still numb.  You expect a bit of numbness having been swimming in cold water and then still soaking wet starting to cycle.  However normally you warm up pretty quickly or at least I do as I'm trying to catch all the swimmers that motored past me on my laboured swim.  This time though while one foot was fine the other still had no feeling.  I discovered that I had overtightened the velcro strap in my enthusiasm to be off.  Loosening it a bit while riding along, the blood slowly returned to my foot. A bit painful - but lesson learnt.


I then found out why the Garmin profile of the bike course (and even more so the run course) had such jagged peaks.   It was really vicious speed-humps that you had to take quite slowly on the bike. However once out of the confines of the service road and out onto the open road, it was foot down and motor.  Pretty good roads generally although as to expected around a large shopping centre, a lot of roundabouts.  The course was really well marshalled by the police and others, and generally the light Sunday morning traffic was really considerate.  Although to be expected there were a couple of idiots (one in a silver BMW convertible) who felt that loosing a couple of seconds even on a Sunday morning because of something mundane like a bike race was just inconceivable.


The one long uninterrupted straight bit of the course along a dual carriage was naturally enough right into a vicious headwind.  It was a case of down onto the tri-bars, choose a lower gear and spin as fast as possible.  There were a number of cyclist that seem to rely on brute strength to grind away in a high gear but I find upping the cadence is a lot less tiring and much quicker.  Certainly worked for me as there were a steady number of people to overtake on this two lap course and you know how I like overtaking people!  Also no one overtook me which was a huge psychological boost and again you know how I like those too.  Found subsequently from the results that quite a few had been penalised for drafting (following another cyclist very closely in order to shelter from the wind) with two minutes being added to their time.


In fact I found it a thoroughly enjoyable ride albeit not one of the most attractive, with my only concern being nervousness about the rear tyre because of problems I'd experience first thing.  Also while dealing with that had noticed a worn patch in the tyre due to the skid in Windsor.  Another lesson learn ~ check the bike properly before a race.  Fortunately nothing untoward happened.


Then back to transition, gingerly over the speed humps while passing the procession of runners.  On with the socks and shoes and into the procession for the first of four laps up and down the service road.  Fortunately you didn't have to count your laps as they gave you coloured elastic bands, one every lap so once you had four you could finish. You might think that its really simple to count up to four, but you'd be surprised in the heat and pain of competition how you lose track of how many laps you've done.  In fact again looking at the results, three people were disqualified for only having done one cycle lap and on this course you only had to count to two! 


In was on lap three that I heard someone calling my name.  Coming towards me on the run was Tim Thompson, a former colleague at Southwark Council, now working for Decathlon (the race sponsor).  Needless to say this spurred me on to increase my pace (well a little bit at any rate) as there is nothing like competing against people you know.  Once finished, with a pretty minimal sprint, met up with Tim to compare experiences.  


Then it was find my sandals and glasses. Again this is where the organisation fell down a bit.  All the bags were just lobbed out of the van for us to scrabble around and try and find ours.  We started to sort them out a bit, but after a race with a lot of tired competitors it was all a bit frustrating.  My earlier concern regarding my glasses was justified. One of the lenses had popped out. I nearly had to drive home in swimming googles (or possibly cycling glasses).  Fortunately I managed to pop it back in securely enough to get me home where I could do a proper repair job.


Never mind, I got talking to someone about a certain make of carbon wheels that I've been considering for a while and his enthusiasm went and tipped me over the edge.  So rather than shop at Lakeside as quite frankly after a triathlon I just didn't feel in the mood to mooch around some shops ~ although I suspect that some of the supporters had been persuaded to get up early on a Sunday  morning with promise of such a 'mooch' later on.       


Back to the car, pack everything up, watch the shoppers begin to roll in and off back along the A13 along still pretty empty roads.  At this point I remembered I'd forgotten yet something else!  I'd not taken any photos!  In my defence there wasn't much of photogenic quality but even so and it does make this report rather text heavy.  Back home before 11:00 and on the sofa, pot of coffee and Sunday papers.  


RESULT: 71st out of 286 in a time of 1:15:39 (4th in the 'old boys' category)