RACE 47 - ROYAL PARKS FOUNDATION HALF MARATHON - 9 October

I wanted to do this race and you've only got to look at the route to see why. Central London, The Mall, Buckingham Palace, the Embankment, Trafalgar Square, quite apart from the parks themselves ~ and all on roads closed to traffic. I nearly didn't get a place as it is oversubscribed every year and I initially didn't get a place. However I got a place on the first round ballot ~ they must have been short of 50 year old men or some such. I must admit I did approach the race with a fair degree of trepidation as over 12,500 take part and unlike the equally big events such as the London Triathlon, the starts aren't in waves spread over the whole day. I've only ever run in a similar sized event ~ a 10k again on closed roads in central London, which had been a bit of a disaster. There had been no grading of the runners so you had absolute 'snails' pushing themselves towards the front while some of the 'speedsters' spent the whole race having to dodge around people. It was not an enjoyable experience.


To digress (as per usual), there are two websites that are worth a browse ~ one about the race http://royalparkshalf.com/ and one about the foundation that looks after the parks http://www.supporttheroyalparks.org/ From these I gleaned the following snippets:

• In the 16th century, The Green Park was popular with duellists and many a gentleman died on the turf where office workers now enjoy their lunchtime breaks.
• In the 13th century, a leper hospital was founded alongside St James’s Park, and it is from this hospital that the Park took its name. St James’s Palace was commissioned by Henry VIII on the site of the hospital when it was disbanded in 1532.
• When Oscar Wilde was arrested in 1895 he was first held in the Old Police House in Hyde Park. His old cell is now a lavatory!
• William III bought what was originally part of Hyde Park in 1689. An asthma sufferer, the Kind found the location quiet and the air salubrious and so he commissioned Sir Christopher Wren to design the redbrick building that is Kensington Palace.
• Queen Caroline, the wife of George II, ordered the damming of the River Westbourne in Hyde Park as part of a general redevelopment of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. At that time, the Westbourne formed eleven natural ponds in the park. During the 1730s, the lake filled to its current size and shape.
• William III travelled along Rotten Row (then Route du Roi) between his residence at Kensington Palace and Westminster. Anxious to ensure his protection from roving highwaymen, lamps were hung from the trees, making it the first public road to be lit.

However back to the race itself. I was pleased to find that everyone was graded and their numbers colour coded according to ability (as in the race entry we had been asked for estimated finish time). I wasn't in the first group ~ sub 1:30 runners, but in the next group which seemed to be 1:30 to 2:00 hours which suited me just fine. It also meant that while there were a lot of charity runners, it was unlikely that there would be many in full costume at this pace. I'm still traumatise by being overtaken by a runner in a full chicken suit, with chicken feet, feathers, comb ~ the lot, in a race a couple of years ago!


An advantage with a central London race was it was a stroll down to Brixton tube, five stops and off at Green Park for a 15 minute stroll to the start. Easy-peasy! It was interesting seeing how packed the tube was early Sunday morning, mainly with trainer-wearing passengers all with their chip timing device attached to their shoes. Degrees of nervousness, preparedness and enthusiasm were all evident ~ from the obvious athletes to the "give it a go and hope I make it" brigade. 

It was a pretty damp start to the day but it did brighten up a bit as the day wore on. Getting to the start I was amazed at how big the "event village" was. The bag marque was enormous and incredible well organised - no need for queuing at all, the food on offer was amazingly wide ranging, the charity marques seemed endless .... and so on. I had intended to look around and meet up with some others such as Elaine, Becky, Gordon .... who were also running ~ but no chance. It really was like finding a needle in a haystack! Never mind the atmosphere was gripping and all really good natured. The warm up was led by Nell Andrews dressed as a woodland fairy. I'm assuming she's a 'celebrity'. I 'Googled' her and I'm not much the wiser ~ though to be fair she seems to do a lot of charity work and I found out later she finished 15 minutes faster than me! So celebrity or not, she's a fine runner!


One of the races' raison d'etres is sustainability. This was emphasised as we were corralled into our coloured enclosures. Any clothes we were wearing to keep warm while waiting for the off and didn't want, could be left by the side and Oxfam would pick them up and use them. Our medals were made out of wood from the trees of the park; the race shirts made out of bamboo (and they are really good too!); the water provided by M&S were all in small bottles which would be recycled; the bananas at the end were fair-trade ....  see what I mean?

The elites were set off on the dot of 9:30, and once that corral of people had moved off it was our turn to move up to the line and be 'released'. It was a stunning site see a mass of runners streaming down South Carriage Drive towards Hyde Park Corner and Wellington Arch. Under the arch and then down Constitution Hill toward Her Maj's house. 


One other thing that the organisers had done was provide pace runners. These were runners that had flags on their backs showing the intended finish time of that particular person. I was aiming for a finish around the 1:40 mark, so I kept those particular mauve flags in view. It resulted in the pace runners having a small posse of people around them. One disadvantage of getting too close to them was that as they were pace runners they were running well within their capability so still had breath enough to chat!

Past Buckingham Palace seeing the bemused tourists wondering why they couldn't cross the road and why their holiday snaps were being ruined by a bunch of sweaty runners. Past St James's Park towards Parliament Square and Big Ben. This was mile two, only 11.1 to go! It was then a loop over Westminster Bridge then along the embankment towards Temple. 


Along this section of the run we passed the elites coming in the other direction. They seemed to be running flat out but effortlessly. The next two miles were along the Embankment ~ out and back with the first of a number of well organised drinks stations at mile four. I kept an eye out for others I knew who were running but I had no chance of spotting anyone ~ it was just a constant stream of runners.


It was then a right turn into Whitehall by Horse Guards Parade, up towards Trafalgar Square for more bemused tourist hoards. It was here that as it was beginning to hurt (mile five) we noticed a 'rather' (in the voice of Terry Thomas) welcome distraction. A couple of incredibly attractive young ladies who'd obviously been partying Saturday night stood by the kerb (probably wondering how to get across the road or find a taxi) in short figure-hugging dresses and 'physics-defying' plunging necklines. A real vision of loveliness that had a tendency to cause male runners to take quite a tight racing line around that particular corner; to pick up the pace; to straighten the shoulders and pull in the stomach and generally try and look like we weren't dying inside. As I say a welcome distraction!

Running down the middle of The Mall towards Buckingham Palace was an incredibly dramatic and memorable experience. It was then back up Constitution Hill ~ funny how much steeper it felt  going up after 5.5 miles. We even saw a couple of runners going in the opposite direction. I can only assume they had started late as they were on their first mile while we had finished our fifth. From mile 6 to the end was all in Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens ~ which was great as this was where most of the supporters were.  Up past the Serpentine to the North Carriage Drive. It was at this point there were a bunch of Prostate Cancer volunteers/ supporters who gave me a rousing cheer! Very welcome as by this point (mile 7) the legs were getting decidedly leaden.  


Again this section was one that had the faster runners going in the opposite direction looking (most of them) still fresh and full of running. A few had pained expressions which made me feel like I wasn't he only one suffering. Back past the Serpentine, this time with the opposite scenario -  we were the faster runners passing those who were slower. 


At mile nine it was back up the back running paralleled to Park Lane. It was at this point that I had my first shock of the day (apart that is from the girls in the skimpy dresses) as a guy seemed to stumble, recover slightly and then just collapse. Seeing some marshals ahead a couple of us rushed on to explain what had happened and as luck would have it a couple of paramedics on bikes happened along and were quickly assisting the person who'd collapsed. Certainly a sobering thought. 


At mile ten (which had in the other direction had been mile seven) another rousing cheer from the Prostate Cancer supporters, which if anything was even more welcome this time!  

The last three miles through Kensington Gardens was just painful. The 1 hour 40 min pace runner slowly drew ahead to about 200 yards - just couldn't keep up. It was a case of grit your teeth, keep the pace runner in sight and keep going. It had been too much for another runner as I passed someone else collapsed being attended by paramedics with an oxygen mask. Only two other memorable points ~ well that's all I remember of the last couple of miles at any rate. Firstly, someone had a talking watch that constantly update him to how fast he was going, what his current pace was and what that meant in terms in finish time. It was so irritating that I actually found it in myself to speed up a bit in order to get away from the annoying metallic voice. Secondly, the long finish straight along the South Carriage Drive had signs like only 800m to go, 500m etc. It made it seem further if anything! 

At the finish a well organised and efficient series of marshals saw us be-medalled (its a nice wooded one in the shape of a maple leaf), watered, de-chipped and handed a banana. Wondering back to to the equally efficient bag drop marque to get my warm clothes and returned to the the finish to see if I could spot anyone ~ no luck (and I hadn't bothered to take the phone - duh!).  As I trudged wearily and stiffly back to Green Park tube, I swore I wouldn't do another road race of this distance, they're just too painful. Needless to say, I've already booked my expression of interest for next year and this time I'll finish in front of the pace runner!                   


Press release: 
http://royalparkshalf.com/press/news/12500-runners-race-through-london


RESULT: 1100 out of 11,480 in a time of 1:40:24 


From the results I found that I was 157th in the 45+ category; it had taken 3 minutes from the starting gun until I'd crossed the start line; and  most startling for me, my time for the first half of the race was less than a minute faster than my time for the second half!

RACE 46 - CHILHAM CASTLE DUATHLON - 2 October

"The distance for the duathlon run by Tri Spirit Events will be a 10km off road run held within the picturesque grounds of Chilham Castle with views of the castle and Canterbury Cathedral.  This will be followed by a very fast but challenging cycle route partly ridden on a designated cycle time trial route then finishing off with a 5km run, again in the park." The deceptively pleasant low key description by the race organisers. 


We were finally having some hot weather ~ a very late reminder of what summer could have been. It was so hot that we received this email from the race organisers the day before along the lines of: "We have added a water station on the bike course due to the hot weather conditions. It will be located at the Wagon & Horses PH, on Faversham Road at about 13K on the route. This will be bottled water only with a sports cap, which will be open for you. If you are discarding your own bottle can you please discard it before the left hand turn at 14.5K. My marshals can then do a sweep of this area. Please do not use my marshals as target practise, as you might wobble and fall off your bike, thank you :-)
This is an additional supply of water and we still recommend that you take your own fluids with you on the bike."


My race preparation wasn't the most well thought out this weekend. Saturday, in which temperatures according to the news had reached 29C, consisted of playing two hockey matches. While loosing 3-0 (we've not had the most impressive start to the season: P2, W0, D0, L2, F0, A9, GD -9 = Points 0) I managed to pull off a pretty good save but for my pains (literally) took a ball on the top of my knee. So sweltering afternoon heat, dehydration, bruised knee and an incredibly 'moist' and smelly kit (it took the best part of a week to air and to largely get rid of the smell ~ a big disadvantage with GK kit is that you can't wash all the padding) meant an evening with the windows open (the flat was decidedly 'fragrant' as you can imagine), icing the knee and getting the kit ready for an early start. The race was starting at 8am so how hot could it get?

Up a the crack of dawn ~ well actually a bit before, and off down the A2. South London was buzzing even this early or rather late as most of those hadn't yet been to bed. Even had a minor traffic jam at New Cross as there were so many people up and around. 


Traffic was light once out beyond the M25 so made good time watching the sun peeping through and burning off the light mist. Arriving in good time ~ this was view that greeted you. Chilham Castle is on the edge of the North Downs so there were some lovely sweeping panoramas, hills, misty hollows, deep overhanging wooded sections - a fantastic driving experience. I found out later on the bike retracing  this route that the hills, panoramas, misty hollows etc. were slightly less appreciated.

Registered, collected the goody bag, set up the the bike and kit in transition and most importantly sourced a cuppa! 


While racking the bike I was chatting to some of the other racers and they were amazed that Halfords had produced a TT Carrera ~ thought I'd actually put the decals on myself! To be honest the bike did look a bit sad without the carbon back wheel as because of the puncture I'd been forced to put the original old wheel back on. This proved to be a bit of a faff as I had to remember to change the brakes over as well from the carbon pads back to the standard rubber. The other chat I had was while changing into my race gear in the 'changing tent' ~ bit of a luxury this, another competitor, a local chap, was explaining the cycle route to me. He was rather ominously doing the race as part of relay team as he claimed the run was a real b******d ~ very prophetic as it turned out! 


The bike course which he'd practised on the day before was a bit of a mix and the secret was not to start out too fast as the first 20-25km was quite hilly. None of the hills were particularly steep he explained, just deceptively long inclines that often steepened just as you made the ridge of the North Downs. It did make the descending fast and interesting though I should watch out for the bends and some dodgy bits of asphalt on the "racing line". The remaining part of the race was pretty much flat so should be pretty fast.  Not entirely sure whether he was just being friendly and helpful (I think on balance he was) or trying to psych me out as he also mentioned he'd done it the previous day in 1:07. Found out subsequently that they had won the team race. This course was described on the race website as being "The biting 13K uphill start to the bike section testing the riders' legs, but there is plenty of flat and fast downhill for the competitors in the remainder of the 40K." 

At 8am we all lined up for the start of what was described as  "a challenging 10K cross country run". Oh boy that's an understatement! The first 1km was uphill, no easing us in gently! While the hills weren't of the steepness of some of the other 10k's I've done, it was the constancy of seemingly always going upwards that draining. Obviously there were some downhill sections but they tended to be steeper and gave little opportunity to catch your breath. The other problem was we got lost! How could you get lost on a well marshalled and signed course? Quite easily as it turned out as one of the supporters left a gate open so about a dozen of us went through the gate and down the hill. Fortunately we were spotted and called back before we'd reached the bottom but it was a bit of a slog. The next time we came round - as it was a two lap circuit, they'd parked a car in front of the gate so there was no confusion. After a few more ups and downs it was a run along the 500 year old chestnut avenue towards the castle. At this point it was another run uphill towards the start/finish line to repeat the lap. 


It was stunning countryside, a mixture of woodlands and open estate, liberally dotting with cross-country horse jumps. The estate operates a livery stable and horse eventing being quite a feature of their diversification. Underfoot while one section was a bit muddy, the remainder was fine and in fact the majority of runners were in road shoes whereas I'd opted for trail shoes. 

Having almost staggered up the final hill to transition in a not very impressive 51 minute 10k time ~ it was time for the bike. So far the knee was bearing up pretty well, sore but by no means debilitating. The first section of the bike the organisers had suggested we might want to walk as it was a rough gravel track downhill towards the estate road. Having done what felt like 'off-roading' at Hever, I decided to risk it - albeit rather gingerly. Making the road, it was turn left out of the grounds to start the long climb. I took the advice and didn't start out too fast, slow enough to eat some jelly babies and have some drink. However seeing someone in the distance, decided enough was enough and picked up speed. Although it was uphill, in parts it was possible to go down on the tri-bars and pick up some speed. In one section - under trees that created a green tunnel over the road, the temperature dropped considerable, enough to make you shiver while the heavy dew still hadn't cleared from the road surface. 


I began to catch and overtake some of the faster runners or those who hadn't gone the wrong way. To be honest I was really enjoying myself, smooth asphalt which meant my jelly babies stayed put, fantastic North Downs scenery, warm sunshine and a few of my fellow competitors to catch and overtake. I had the audacity to overtake one guy in full aero-helmet while he was having a drink, next thing - whoosh. He stormed past, head down in full tuck. I managed to keep him sight downhill round the swooping bends but as soon as we got on the flat section he pulled away. Unfortunately I don't have the 'Sir Chris Hoy' thighs to push the top gear in anything less than perfect conditions on the flat. Something to work on over winter perhaps.


The first 20km were undulating as it was all up to and over the North Downs. The second 20 km was out and back along the valley which was almost flat, very fast but considerably less enjoyable as the scenery wasn't as attractive, the traffic was beginning to build and the road surface wasn't quite as good. Also by this time my knee was aching but more problematic was my kit selection. I'd decided not to wear my tri-gear, instead going for running kit. No tri-shorts meant no padding so a certain amount of "discomfort" and "chaffing" was occurring. 

As we turned into the estate again, it was quite a steep up hill section liberally dotted with tourists that a) didn't have quite the same urgency and b) seemed unaware of the fact that cyclists were whizzing passed them. The last bit up a very steep gravel section I just managed to make. Once in transition changing into my running shoes for the final 5km run, I heard cheers as the first person finished the race - a bit depressing! Staggering off, I realised I may, just may have overdone it a bit on the bike especially as you'll remember, the first 1km of the course was all uphill. Feeling rather light-headed as by now it was about 10:00am and warming up nicely (that is if you weren't running) I stumbled round what proved to be one of my slowest 5km's of the year. Fortunately someone had overtaken me in the transition and all I did was keep him in sight and plod on.


It was a great race, very tough, well organised and friendly. Yet it was tinged with sadness as it's the last opportunity to use the tri-bike for nearly six whole months - how will I survive?


RESULT:  24th out of 73 in time of 2:38:14 


I was 3rd in my age group but amazingly winner was also in my age group and was 30 mins quicker! I've obviously got a bit to go yet. To be fair I did check up on him and he is Nick Kinsey, an eight-time competitor at the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii: one of the most consistent British competitors in Ironmen over the last 20 years: is a Tri UK sponsored athlete: and runs training camps in Mallorca (see http://www.mallorcaman.co.uk/) so I was "a bit" out-classed!


Now for some interesting trivia. The Chilham Castle website (http://www.chilham-castle.co.uk/) is one of the most comprehensive websites I've come across - just look at the history section! I've pulled out two of the more "interesting bits" ~ well unusual at any rate.


1.The Chilham Elephants
"At the foot of School Hill is a building which lies at the centre of some persistent village tales. It is now called “The Elephant House”, because reputedly it once housed elephants brought from India to clear timber in the estate woodlands and park.


When sold in the 1980s it was known as “Annagh House” (named after a village in Ireland) and, through most of the preceding decades of the 20th century, it was occupied by gardeners and game-keepers or members of the owners' family. The external appearance of the present building suggests a 19th century conversion of an 18th century structure. The pilaster on the front resembles closely the pillars flanking Colebrooke's claire-voie, but in 1741 the site was occupied by a gazebo in the form of a turret not unlike those on the castle to-day.


A recent occupier has told us of drainage channels beneath the floor and it is sometimes suggested that the large recessed arches on the park side of the building provided access for the animals, but such features are not uncommon in places where there is no talk of elephants – perhaps the nearest example is the stable at Syndale Park on the outskirts of Faversham,


Stories differ as to when the elephants were here and evidence is very patchy. In the 18th century, two generations of the Colebrooke family maintained strong connexions with the East India Company, which in their day, ruled India. The joints in the brickwork where the “Elephant House” adjusts to the slope of School Hill are regarded by some people as indicating that Robert Colebrooke converted the gazebo to house elephants. We are told that mahouts slept in the loft. In those days, any visitors from the next town would be viewed with circumspection, but we have no records of Indians in the village. One might wonder how well they (perhaps with their families) would have fitted into village life.


In his meticulous history of Chilham,Thomas Heron, the Colebrookes' successor, gives elephants no mention, but soon after his departure, we are told that Jane Austen wrote to her sister from their brother's home at Godmersham after “a walk to see Mr Wildman's elephants at Chilham”. Until we can track this letter down, the tale remains unsubstantiated.


After Jane Austen's death, Mr Wildman married the daughter of a former Governor of Madras, but this connexion with India takes us nowhere. From the memoirs of Matilda, their daughter, we learn of the wisteria brought from China but elephants from India are not mentioned. In the collection of paintings left for us by Matilda's sister Emily, we see horses, dogs and birds, but no elephants. The history of Chilham, by Emily's son, Arthur Bolton, written in 1911, is equally silent.


However, from now on we are on more solid ground. Relatives of the Hardy family have an old oil painting inscribed “The elephant brought from Ceylon by Mr Charles Hardy in 1875” This seems to be a copy of a photograph shown here which has been reproduced widely. In the records of the Chilham Society it appears with the caption "Tambo with the elephant brought from Ceylon by Charles S Hardy in 1875" The Hardy family also own a collar which, according to family tradition, the animal wore; its distinctive buckle can be recognised in the photograph. There are recollections in the village of about 100 years ago, when we are told, an elephant, (kept, according to one local resident, with the horses in the stables near the Keep) used to tow a mower over the castle lawns (presumably wearing the collar) and on special occasions such as Boxing Day, village children were allowed to ride on its back.


Thirty years ago, in open ground beside the Chestnut Avenue about 250 yards from the ha-ha, there used to be three large stones bearing names. A hundred years ago the estate plan showed a small clump of trees on the site, but the trees and the stones have now vanished. Word on the estate was that they marked the graves of elephants, but they might have been for dogs or horses. Excavation might provide an answer.
Meanwhile, the stories and the questions persist.


2. Australian cricket
In the National Library of Australia, Canberra, hangs a painting, said to show an Australian cricket team on their second test tour, playing at Chilham in August 1878 against “Mr Wilsher's Gentlemen”. Reputedly by William Andrews Nesfield 1793 - 1881 a famous landscape gardener &, in his early years, a competent water-colourist, the quality of its execution is remarkable for a man aged 85 &, and it should be noted, has been done in oil.

A copy can be found at the St Lawrence Cricket Ground in Canterbury, but anyone familiar with Chilham & its history can tell that this picture is not authentic.

Rather than showing the castle as it was in 1878, the painter copied an engraving by William Watts from “Seats of the Nobility & Gentry” showing the scene exactly as it had been in 1785 – including the trees growing beside the keep. However the painter failed to notice that mid-wicket in 1878 was a huge holm oak, which by then was already a couple of generations old.

Even the shadow across the windows of the house in the 1785 engraving is reproduced with absolute precision in the painting, but evidently the Victorian painter was unaware of big changes to the building during the intervening century. Instead of the long service wing added in 1863 the painter shows us a small pinnacled Jacobean orangery which, by 1878, had vanished.

In the foreground is a crenellated wall, upon which are inscribed the names of all the players & the scores achieved by each team. Like the match depicted, these battlements, though perhaps roughly in line with the sunk wall or ha-ha bordering the park, are pure artistic fancy.

The owner of Chilham in 1878 was not, as is sometimes stated, Lord Harris of Belmont, but another great enthusiast for the game, Col. Charles Stewart Hardy. Hardy's cricket ground was not where the painter imagines, on the sloping crown of the park just south of the house, but far away in the lower park on level ground, where the Colonel had adapted an old pavilion built into the park wall.

Derek Carlaw of Canterbury has proved conclusively that the match never took place; copies of his report are available on request. By the publication of these notes & the report of Mr Carlaw's thoroughgoing research, we aim to debunk this fantasy scene & the persistent legends to which it has given rise."

RACE 45 - HEVER CASTLE "HENRY VIII" MID-DISTANCE TRIATHLON - 25 September

Well this is a return to the venue and course of Race 35 - the Hever Castle Evening Sprint Triathlon that I did back in July. So look at the bright side, all the trivial information and historical bits you've already read about so I won't need to be repeating them again!


There's a race report on http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2011/09/26/15104/ which I've (slightly) edited below. Also in the same issue is an interesting piece on the reports that Lance Armstrong has returned to triathlons and had come second in the race. He'd started as a triathlete before changing to road cycling, but his upper-body weight he had required to compete in triathlons had counted against him in his early career as a pro-cyclist. 

"Over 3,500 adults and children came from all over the country to take part in the Hever Castle Triathlon. The childhood home of Anne Boleyn, Hever Castle provided a spectacular backdrop for this, the final event in the 2011 Castle Triathlon Series, with competitors raising money for Help for Heroes and Jigsaw4u.


The Castle Triathlon Series has grown dramatically since conception in 2009 and attracted over 5,000 participants for this year’s events, held at three castles in the UK and one in France. Now in its third year, the Hever Castle Triathlon is the third largest triathlon in the country and one of the largest children’s events in Europe (450 children took part this weekend). 


Triathletes started with an open-water swim in the magnificent 38-acre Hever Castle Lake, followed by the cycle which took place on a 20km circuit through the High Weald of Kent, an area of outstanding natural beauty, with one lap for the sprint and two laps for the Olympic distance. The runners circumnavigated the estate and castle grounds before making the dash to the finishing line beside the lake.


Six races took place over the course of the two-day event, each one themed to reflect the history of the 13^th century castle and its association with Anne Boleyn. This year the event also attracted hundreds of women, who registered for the women-only waves."  The names of the races included the Hever - which is the Olympic distance of a 1500m swim, a 40km cycle and a 10km run; the Henry VIII - Mid distance (the one I did) consisting of a 800m swim, 40km cycle and 8km run; and the Anne Boleyn, the sprint distance of 400m swim, 20km cycle and 4km run. 

My race start wasn't until about 10:30, so it was almost a lie-in which I appreciated due to yesterday's exertions. On the whole I wouldn't recommend two triathlons in a weekend, although with one being off-road it certainly gave me another opportunity to get both my bikes and all my kit dirty. In fact my main worry had been rinsing off the wetsuit, ensuring the worst of the mud was removed from my Prostate Cancer top and making sure it was dry.


I decided to arrive early partly as I'm rubbish (as you've probably gathered by now) at judging the time it takes and also I wanted to take some photos. The sprint waves (15 of them), women-only waves and all the children's races (12 different ones) had taken part on Saturday. Sunday we had six Olympic waves (starting at 8am) and four mid-distance waves. By driving down early it did mean I had another memorable drive as once out of London it was quite misty with the sun just beginning to make an impression. So across the North Downs and on to the Weald, the landscape was quite ethereal.


Parking up in one of the estate's fields, issue no.1. They had just mowed the field presumably because it was going to be used as a car park but it meant the wet cuttings clung to everything and got everywhere. The bike looked positively organic while the inside of the car was positively 'lush'. 

Normal routine, register to get race numbers and timing chip, then rack the bike and layout the kit. As I was reasonably early I had the choice of racking stations and had a prime spot at the end of my Wave 9 row. It meant that I should find it pretty easy to find the bike - in theory at any rate. Seeing that the earlier waves were already coming in off the swim to get their bikes I decided to remain in routine - find somewhere for a 'cup-of-rosie', take some photos and suss-out the course ~ especially the swim-in; bike-out/in and the run-out and finish as these can all prove a bit confusing in the heat of the race.

Had a bit of an explore, found the castle cafe and shop, toilets (if there was one criticism of this event - too few loos!) and managed to peer through gates at the gardens. Didn't have time for a really good look around so will have to leave a proper explore of the castle for another time - one where lycra isn't involved!


Got chatting to some of my fellow competitors back in transition. Some had attended the day before as wives/husbands/children had competed while they had provided support. They said the place was "rammed" on Saturday which is unsurprising considering there were 27 waves over the day. It certainly explained the mass of inflatables nearby as Saturday is seen as the family day while the Sunday racing was marginally more "serious" due to the longer distances involved. it was a pity in some ways that the inflatables weren't involved in the race in some way like the Green Belters (races 24 and 31) but I guess that would have been a little too frivolous. 


While in transition, doing the last of the pre-racing faffing - we had to direct a number of competitors from earlier waves on where the exits were, and in one case had to shout at one that he'd still got his helmet on. Rather shamefaced he hung it on one of the fences and explained "spot the rower!" Then wetsuit on and off down the hill to the start. 

This is something I've noticed with a number of races. Lakes have a tendency of being in the bottom of a valley. Transition on the other hand have a tendency on being on a hill. Therefore the run from swim to bike is unsurprisingly uphill. This race was no exception and although the run isn't as brutal as the 400m uphill stagger at Blenheim (race 26) at 100m it was no pushover! I'd noticed from watching the previous waves that a fair amount of effort was being expended by the competitors. 


Autumnal colour was certainly noticeable in the trees lining the lake and we had been warned that the water temperature was "autumnal" too. We congregated for our race briefing which suggested that while we could swim wide to avoid congestion, there was a fair amount of weed ~ a bit of an understatement as I found out. At one point I felt more like The Monster from the Blue Lagoon (MftBL)!  It also included warnings about not overtaking cars on the cycle leg (a fact that will become pertinent later) as it could lead to disqualification. After the race briefing we were given a rousing speech by Henry VIII (I kid you not), the fountains started (10:30 must have been the time they let in the visitors) and with a final "Huzzah!" it was down the steps to the start line. The water was decidedly "autumnal" in fact it was almost "wintry".

The swim took on the normal routine; breast-stroke starting near the back, overtaking one or two free-stylers who'd gone off too fast or had reverted to breast stroke, watched the leaders pass as it was an out and back course and then as the finish neared, speed up (ever so slightly). The only difference being the MftBL moments as the weed seemed to be everywhere. At least it gave you something to think about other than the cold water. I can see why triathlons are a summer sport - not only because of the water temperature but afterwards running to the bike soaking wet was a bit chilly ~ although the jog up hill got the blood moving again.


It's a good feeling to reach transition to find that my bike isn't the last one there as there are even slower swimmers than me! Finally its off on the bike.


As before the first bit, getting off the Hever estate is slow as the track surface is potholed and there are some really vicious speed humps. Once on the open road though it's a different matter. Down into the tuck position and 500m later back up onto the bars for the first hill. As before (and unlike lance Armstrong in his early career ~ I have no issue with upper body weight!) I manage to catch a fair few on the hills. I was pleased that on the two laps (twice the distance of the evening race) I was only overtaken once and that was by someone who overtook going downhill, round a blind corner and nearly getting wiped out by a 4x4 ~ and anyway I'm not counting him because I re-overtook on the next hill. 

Three things of note happened on the cycle section as far as I was concerned. Firstly while I'd (almost) sorted out my drinks bottle so I could take on liquid, I lost all my jelly babies! As this cycle section was twice as far as I'd raced before I thought I had better take on sustenance. I had stuffed my 'bento' ~ a small bag that sits on the top of my frame and contains my 'Pitstop' puncture repair, with a handful of jelly babies. These would give me a sugar rush should I begin to flag. The problem was that when I came to eat some of them, I found that the roads had been so bumpy in places that they had all fallen out and were scattered along the byroads of The Weald.

Secondly, on the first lap I came around a corner to be confronted by a Land Rover Discovery in a ditch faced by one of those huge black 4x4's, the ones that look like they've been on steroids (so it could any of a Porche/ BMW/ Audi/VW/ Volvo ......) There was no evidence that a cyclist had been involved - just the meeting of two leviathans on a narrow country road. The paramedics were in attendance and virtually all evidence had been erased by the time I came round on my second lap. 


Thirdly and I'm not proud of this, but I had a blazing row with a car driver. I was in full aero-tuck haring down a straight hill almost certainly above the 30mph speed limit when a car squeezed past me. At the bottom still at some speed I caught the car on some corners as he'd slowed down. By now in his rear view mirror I decided not to overtake and risk a DQ. However seeing me in his mirror he decided to slow down even further at which point I rather less than diplomatically said what I thought of the "plonker". It was a nice warm day so his windows were open and he heard - oops! Stopping suddenly and almost causing me to come-off into the hedge, a rather pompous voice asked for my race number and informed me he would report me to the race marshals. I told him what he could do with my race number after all it was prominent and easy to read, overtook him and cycled on. Putting a bit of of pall on the remainder of the race I decided to "fess-up". At the end of the race I went and found the race organiser and explained what happen. He asked rather sternly whether any of the marshals or the race referees had seen the incident ~ they hadn't. then with a piercing glare he took in the vision of something rather less than an impressive triathlete, more of a sweaty wet rag and pointed out that I was on a two-wheeled rather fragile vehicle making me a rather vulnerable road user while this other person was in a solid steel box and was an utter "plonker" especially as the whole area was festooned with warnings about cyclists. 


Ironically towards the end of the second lap I'd got held up again by a car but this time as the driver was so obviously taking considerable care to give cyclists a wide berth and not intimidate them in any way I stayed behind her until I finished the lap.  


Getting back to transition I had a bit of a shock. There were no bikes ~ I was the first one back from my wave! My first thought was that I must have done too few laps but even I can count to two. I subsequently found that I done each of my two laps faster than I'd done the single lap back in June. So remembering to take my helmet off, grabbing a handful of jelly babies - I was going to eat some having bought them, set off on the run. As you'll remember from last time it was 1km uphill, downhill to the lake, around the lake and passed the castle, a nasty little gravel incline to a sprint finish - except this time it was two laps instead of one so in sight of the finish gantry it was turn off and repeat.


It was a hard slog but managed to hold my own and was only overtaken once. I certainly got a better view of the castle this time as I knew where to look and had two laps in which to distract myself. It was quite a contrast as this time the castle was fully open to the public. You had all these visitors enjoying the castle and the grounds on a lovely Sunday morning and then a continuous stream of red-faced, sweating, panting Lycra-clad 'athletes' making their around at varying speeds. I'm sure some of the families, especially with young children were traumatised!


Removing my bike from transition I found that I had been remarkably lucky. My rear tyre was almost flat. At some point I'd punctured but it hadn't affected my race. With these tyres, its not a case of using a rubber solution glue and a patch, you have to ripped them off the rim (as they've been glued on) and then send them away to a man in Rotherham who un-stitches them, repairs them (if possible), re-stitches them and send them back. Then it's a case of of re-glueing (or having it done) to the rim. No chance of doing all that by next week's race then!


Driving back after the race I passed through a  village near to our cycle route. They had a lot of total road closures due to a half-marathon being held that morning. I began to feel a little sympathy for local car drivers having to navigate diversions due to half marathons and then hoards of cyclists while out on an errand to get the milk or the Sunday papers. So felt slightly guilty about my over-reaction but it was all over by mid-day and then again he was a pompous "plonker"!     


RESULT: 13th (1st M-V50) out of 269 in a time of 2:20:02   


   

RACE 44 - X T TRIATHLON - 24 September

It was great to be driving to the race from somewhere other than London  I'd been staying with mum and dad down in Somerton, so it was as quick to drive up the A303 to Camberley as it was to drive out from London. Fortunately I'd had the foresight to pack on my off-road tri-gear (well nearly all, I'd forgotten a towel. One day I'll turn up to a race with all my gear and won't know what to do with it). 


Early start but a beautiful journey. Low lying mist with just the tops of trees poking out and the watery sun just beginning to peer through as I drove eastwards. There was the beginnings of autumn colour in the roadside verges especially the Wayfaring tree (Viburnum lanata). Passing Stonehenge in the mist was very atmospheric and erm ....  'historic'. Yet again a journey through some beautiful English countryside unfortunately seen from dual carriageway - it is so tempting to get out of the car and just enjoy it! 

Arrived at the venue at about 8:am in good time to register and get ready. Then checked the actual start time of my particular race - oops! Had miss-read the race instructions and found that two duathlons and the British Triathlon Cross Championships (the Olympic distance race of the one I was doing) were occurring before mine. I didn't actually race until 11:30 so I could have had a bit more of a lie-in. Never mind, it did give me a chance for a second breakfast (bacon buttie with brown sauce) and a cuppa and to cheer on the other competitors. it also allowed me to see some of the professional athletes in action and try and pick up some tips.


Snapping away trying to get some action shots and atmospheric views of the course my  camera batteries run out. Couldn't swop to the spare as I'd forgotten to charge that one as well. Oh well, it wasn't a complete disaster as again with one of All About the Triathlons races, they were providing free downloads of the action.


The sun by now had come out and it was getting quite warm. By the time we started it was going to be 'a bit of a scorcher'. Watched the elites on the mountain bike course which this year came alongside the lake, right passed the transition and spectator viewing. Two things I noticed straight away was that this stretch was approached with some trepidation as it was  gravelly and potentially very wet (I didn't actually see anyone fall off into the lake but there were a few close calls and one or two of the competitors decided to get off and push) and secondly after the first lap most of the competitors were very muddy. Something to look forward to! 


One other observation was that although the duathletes were now finishing their races, it was noticeable how the triathlon supporters cheer and whoop while the duathlon supporters were largely mute.

There is a report of the British Triathlon Cross Championship race on the Triathlete-Europe website  (see http://triathlete-europe.competitor.com/2011/09/26/xttriathlon-2011-british-triathlon-cross-championships/ ). I particularly like the introduction "The pristine calm waters of Hawley Lake and peaceful surrounding forest of Gibraltar Barracks was abruptly disturbed as 400 athletes descended on the Royal Engineers training land just outside London" and "This year’s XTTriathlon saw the emergence off road triathlon as the next pinnacle of triathlon racing testing stamina and agility on the uneven bike and run routes". 

The race website describes the course as "demanding" and boasting "an open water swim, a 12 km mountain bike loop and a 5km off road run loop. You'll be mountain biking and running across army training land; you'll be tested on tough woodland trails; and you'll race across open and single forest tracks." Which pretty much sums it up. 


The 750m swim was a mass start with all of us treading water and then swimming clockwise around two small wooded islands. One of the islands seemed to have an angler on it  who must have been fishing overnight. A quiet idyllic spot until the wet-suited hoards descended. Needless to say it was my normal approach to this part of the race - hang around at the back and try and keep pace with some of the slower swimmers. Although the weather was beautiful the water temperature was decidedly 'autumnal'. 

Got into a little bit of traffic around the turn buoys but other than that the swim went well. Half way through we were buzzed by a helicopter, but I couldn't tell whether it was military or not. As you can see from the photo I wasn't last out of the water but by the time I reached transition a lot of the bikes had gone.    


The 12km bike route had been significantly modified from previous years. It had been a short lap that you did a number of times but this did lead to congestion especially on the narrow up hill sections.  Now it was to be a single enlarged lap that meant less congestion but no way of getting to know it a bit and do faster subsequent laps. The organisers described it as offering a "balance of tough but achievable cycling tracks, overtaking opportunities and an enjoyable single track fast pace forest riding. It starts out on a tarmac road for about 1/2 km then settles into a mix of woodland trails, short sharp climbs (all cyclable) and open tracks. There's about 30% fast downhill single track that are easily navigable but equally dangerous if taken at speed. i.e. you can ride it with a Hybrid bike slowly or fast with a full-sus'." As my bike is a hard-tail mountain bike I thought I should be able to manage the 'fast' end of the scale. I'd also ear-wigged a couple of the riders who'd finished the race before us and they were saying similar although there was quite a lot of mud and a couple of lung-busting hills.

Off I set and managed to make up some ground lost in the swimming. The first hill was doable - I put the bike into my 'granny gear' and just kept the cadence high. One of the advantages I have in hill climbing on the bike is lack of weight. This is emphasised in Lance Armstrong's biography by John Wilcockson,  as too much upper body strength/weight can hamper the cyclist. However the converse is true in the swim as my lack of upper body strength/weight is one of the reasons why I'm such a poor swimmer. 


So uphill and along the flat sections I was holding my own or better, in the downhill technical sections I managed to get the alignment wrong twice - kind of fell off, and was overtaken. I must admit I would have loved a second lap just to nail those sections!


On reaching the transition and managing not to fall off into the lake (though I did have a bit of a wobble trying to show off in front of the crowds), I was pleased to see that fewer bikes were racked this time so I had managed to move up a fair bit in the standings. 

The  5km Run route was described as being "predominately a woodland trail run with some inclines. It's soft under foot all the way with some sandy areas, loose gravel and about 1/2km gravel track. The woodland canopy will offer some shade. A water station is pitched at around 2.5km marker." What they didn't mention were the very steep scrambles in one or two sections, the deep mud, or the sound of continuous gunshots from a pistol shooting range that we would run alongside.

Feeling surprising good at the start of the run, well I guess it's all relative, I actually started overtaking one or two others! It was a lovely course, again different from last year but through some beautiful bits of woodland and heathland. Although I was beaten in a sprint finish I was pleased with the time (sub - 23mins) as it was a tricky and muddy run.


At the finish we had Goodness Shakes and a banana - no medal or t-shirt. But having free downloads more than compensate as does being able to get an immediate download of your result. 


RESULT: 28th (2nd MSuperVet) out of 122 in a time of 1:18:27 

Now for a series of random snippets of history and interesting (well I think so!) facts about the area which as per usual are mainly from Wikipedia. So in no particular order:

• Before the 19th century, this area was referred to as Bagshot Heath, which was known as a haunt of highwaymen such as William Davies - known as the Golden Farmer - and Claude Duval. The land remained largely undeveloped due to a sandy topsoil making it unsuitable for farming. In A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain, written between 1724 and 1726, Daniel Defoe described the area as barren and sterile; "a mark of the just resentment shew’d by Heaven upon the Englishmen’s pride... horrid and frightful to look on, not only good for little, but good for nothing".
• The Southern Scott Scramble, the first known motorcycle scrambling event, took place on Camberley Heath on 29 March 1924. The event, won by A.B. Sparks, attracted a crowd in the thousands and is considered to be the first instance of what later developed in the sport of motocross. 
• During the Second World War, the Old Dean common was used as an instruction camp of the Free French Forces. 
• In 2009 the households of nearby Camberley were named by Experian as having the highest CO2 footprint in the UK, estimated at 28.05 tonnes per household per year (compared to 18.36 tonnes for the lowest, South Shields).
• The site is located in the beautiful Blackwater Valley which is 23 mile long. This valley is known among anglers to be one of the best coarse fishing regions in England (which would explain the loan angler on an island in Hawley Lake) , with the river and gravel pit lakes being well stocked with many native species including brown trout. 
• Hawley woods provide beautiful pine woodland to walk or ride in (or undertake an off-road triathlon).There is a nearby equestrian centre and water sports on Hawley lake.
• The Kremer prize was conceived in the Cambridge Hotel in Camberley in 1959 after the industrialist Henry Kramer toured a Microcell factory. The Kremer prizes are a series of monetary awards that are given to pioneers of human-powered flight. 
  
  
  The first Kremer prize of £50,000 was won on August 23, 1977 by Dr. Paul MacCready when his Gossamer Condor, piloted by Bryan Allen, was the first human-powered aircraft to fly a figure eight around two markers one half mile apart, starting and ending the course at least 10 feet (3.0 m) above the ground.
  
  
  The second Kremer prize of £100,000 was won on June 12, 1979, again by Paul MacCready, when Bryan Allen flew MacCready's Gossamer Albatross from England to France.
  
  
  A Kremer prize of £20,000 for speed was won in 1983 by a design team of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for flying their MIT Monarch B craft on a triangular 1.5 km (0.93 mi) course in under three minutes (for an average speed of 32 km/h (20 mph)).
  
  
  There are currently three Kremer Prizes that have not yet been awarded, for a total of £150,000.
  - 26 mile Marathon course in under an hour (£50,000),
  - Sporting aircraft challenge stressing maneuverability (£100,000),
  - Local challenge that is limited to youth groups (under 18 years) in the UK.
  
  

Finally, a bit of history about the prime use of the site - for military training. Again the full information can be found: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_School_of_Military_Engineering but some detail that caught my eye:

Minley Manor is a Grade 2 listed country manor house, built in the French style by Henry Clutton in the 1860s with further additions in the 1880s. The Manor is situated 2 miles north of junction 4A of the M3 between Farnborough and Yateley in Hampshire and is situated in 38 hectares of grounds. The house was the birthplace of the British diplomat Sir Reginald Hoare, and passed to the War Department in the 1930s, initially for the Senior Wing of the nearby Staff College, Camberley and has been used for the last 20 years or so as the Officers' Mess of No 3 Royal School of Military Engineering at Gibraltar Barracks, which are located on the opposite side of the A327 Minley Road. 

One of the main features is a 600 metre Wellingtonia tree avenue, which was shown off to good effect in the 1969 movie Mosquito Squadron, where the manor house played the part of a French château used as a prisoner of war camp and factory for the V-1 flying bomb. The Manor was also used as a location in the 2007 Victorian fantasy movie Stardust, starring Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer.