I've really been looking forward to this event, and as the final few days ticked by, it was even better, to see the weather forecast improving... Sunshine and a dry day was now on the cards.
Saturday was quite a busy day and therefore saw some late night preparation being done, in fact, it was all done Saturday night!
Five in the morning is never a kind time to be dragged out of your slumber, but I was feeling surprisingly chirpy, when our alarm went off.
Muesli and Granola mix for breakfast, quickly rack our bikes on the car, pack our kit and we're off. Just a touch later than planned, but we're on our way.
An uneventful drive to the coast was briefly interrupted just as we got to GY, when it seems the Heavens opened! Fortunately, it was short lived.
Five minutes later and we were parked up, in the North Car Park.
Registration was still quiet, so we quickly collected our numbers, then went to grab our bikes and kit and get ourselves sorted, prior to entering transition.
Purely by fluke, we arrived in transition, at just the right time to get racking spaces almost at the end of a rail, making spotting easy, and we also benefitted from being really close to the 'Bike Exit'.
A little last minute catching up, with some friends, then back outside to attend the mandatory Pre Race briefing.
Sharon was off almost 50 minutes before me, so it was now time to get poolside.
Once Sharon had completed her swim and headed out, I had adequate time to get changed and lock my pre race kit in a locker.
Joining the queue at pool side, I was given my timing chip. This was secured to my left ankle, as I moved slowly forward to the waters edge.
Simon Edwards (the organiser) gave me the '15 seconds' alert and I entered the water and prepared for the off.
5-4-3-2-1...
I was off. Concentrating on my newly acquired flutter kick (swimming doesn't come easy to me!), I made my way up and down each lane in turn, finally hitting the last lane and existing the water, I made my way through the door and out around the back of the Marina Centre, to T1.
This could go well, or it could get very messy, as I had pre attached my new S Works tri shoes to my pedals, so the 'Flying Squirrel' bike mount was going to happen (I hoped).
Arriving at the bike, I carefully placed my helmet on.It's a very close fit, and I didn't want to cause myself an injury, prior to getting on the bike! Number belt on and I turned, heading for the exit with my Canyon Speedmax.
Out onto the road, over the orange line and... YES!... It worked, I was sat on the bike, rolling along as my feet easily found and entered the back of the S Works shoes. A quick twist of the Boa wheels and I was secured to the pedals.
A shot ride to the mini roundabout and then back along the sea front, passing the cinema.
From there, we had three laps to complete along the Marine Parade, turning at the end of the road, nowhere else to go!
Thankfully, there wasn't the block headwind we all had to endure last year.
As explained in my last blog, just a few days previously, I had done the Retul bike fit, so I was still adjusting to some of the tweaks that James had made.
The ride was going well, but as I did the turn, to head out on the last loop, something clicked and I really started to feel the benefit of the new position. this showed as a 20W increase over that last section.
Over the last roundabout, heading back towards the marina centre and the traffic lights turned red!... As much as I like this event, the traffic lights saga is, quite frankly, ridiculous!
In a race situation, this causes significant delay, and I'm sure it was sufficient to lose me two places overall.
A running dismount saw me enter T2 still with shoes attached to my pedals... A novelty for me, as I usually lose one when I dismount and the shoes clip the road. New pedals for this season are proving a hit ;)
Slightly too long in T2, again caused by the new helmet, and careful removal of the said item.
Out on the run. Three km's... How painful could it be?
My feet were cold, and the shoes for some reason, just felt huge and I felt very flat footed. But, I just concentrated on keeping the pace as high as possible and was soon heading through the Finish Lin gantry.
A hot shower and change of clothes and it was all over for another year...
We loitered near transition for a little while, as we checked out the stock on display by Ben & James of Tri Harder, who'd come down to support the race and provide any last minute equipment needed by any athletes...
Packed up the car and headed home.
PB'd by 3:39, with a final time of 50:54.
Slightly different angles, but I think this years position (bottom), is tighter and narrower than last year (upper).
All done.
Next triathlon is The Grafman middle, also acting as the National champs...
Hopefully, I'll be blogging about something more exciting before that race entry, though...
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