Race Report: Pembrokeshire Triathlon
Lucy, Nick and I popped over to Wales for the latest world qualifing event in Fishguard, Following a long and very wet ride to the location we checked in to register. I earned the nickname "the Legend" that followed me for the whole event. This was earned for dropping my trousers while being marked up with the race numbers - I should add that I was not the only one !
The build up to this race had a carefully prepared taper ... which was ruined when Nick convinced me that it would be a good idea to enter a Saturday swim (1500m) in the sea. Two 750m laps with a run in between. Nick managed 2nd place - and would have been first if he had swum in a straight line. For my sins I finished near the back and was greeted by Nick fully changed and dressed!
On race day it started dry which allowed us to get set up in pleasant conditions. The course was challenging - particularly the cycle that had a long 2 mile climb out of transition. The cycle and run was had its far share of heavy showers which at times made it a bit hairy on the bike.
Lucy did fantastic and finished 1st in her age group, I finished 2nd (AG) and Nick finished 7th (AG). Nick also finished in the top 20 overall.
Lucy and I are now added to those heading for Hamburg for the world championships..
David Ardley
Reader Comments (5)
Just a warning from here in Copenhagen (The Europeans), though: the competition's pretty tough out here! Kevin and I had an enjoyable race this morning, though I don't yet know the results apart from the fact that Kevin caned me and was tucking into pasta and Power Bars by the time I panted across the line in a somewhat lacklustre 2.12 for Olympic distance. Plenty of red, white and blue kit on a beautiful course: lovely swim in the broad sea canal, decent weather, and a bike on broad, closed boulevards, though with a few dead turns and corners that suppressed my speed. British athletes won both the men's and women's age group races overall, with Chris Rhodes from the south-west (sometimes to be seen at the Concept Sport races) winning the former. I had a bit of a technical nightmare with new wheels (which were great) but the valve on their tubular tyres had a not-all-that-slow leak which I only discovered last night, and my attempts to repair in the morning only made worse. Luckily the team manager got me some aerosol sealant from the bike shop stall that opened only minutes before transition closed, and that luckily sorted it. Travelling abroad and (I agree with Lucy's earlier comment) acquiring new kit definitely add to the potentially stressful variables! Altogether, as usual with age group racing, it was a great atmosphere and another nice European city experienced along the way. The men's elite race was quite a spectacle, with Andrew Johns stopping to help draft Tim Don, who had punctured, to the front of the pack again, and also with Will Clarke and Ollie Freeman in the top handful. I was particularly impressed how supportive and friendly they were to us age groupers, especially Tim Don after such a bad day.