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Bala Middle Distance Tri
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have to say that times are moving on - I don't recognise half of them!!
and - is Hollywood being a right tart and wearing his Orca GB shorts??? what a fashion disaster!!
Fab pics Symes - I managed not to see you!
thanks Symes
There's one of me on the bike
orf to look at the photies
I'm small, furry, with 4 paws, easy to spot!
yeah - not many of those around, eh?
Symes - great pics as well as great supporting - you have a solid career ahead of you as a sherpa (but not for many years yet!)
FB, KK - I do have some very good excuses lined up.... my pirate shorts are in some of Syme's photos - but not with me wearing them... but it's probably easiest just to turn Slummo and plead guilty, isn't it?
No idea what the company car is all about - I did look around the car park and didn't spot a single picasso!
Meli and I have the old version of Company Cars but I believe the allowance has gone up now
Thought I'd finally do a proper race report... sorry for the waffle
Preparation - week before did a 100 mile ride and a 19 mile run. Had this shall I? shalln't I? debate... somehow end up with I shall
Weekend in the caravan was fab - thanks especially to MrsF for cooking and MrsJules for providing cake - thanks also to Jules for letting us pick on his diet all weekend
Pre race - all was very calm and relaxed - very different to last year - genuinely I really missed Cath's wibbling!
Swim - very, very, very quiet swim - started on the right, stayed on the right, had no company until the final few metres of the second kilometer (which turned out to be Rosey!) - possibly did 32 minutes - yippee!
T1 - disaster - that wetsuit would not come off - which meant my legs got cramp... which meant I couldn't get my shoes on - all in all it felt like an age... given the amount of time I sat down pulling at my wettie, I am amazed that the clock shows I was only 50 seconds slower than Rosey!
Bike - went to Heart Rate... and it showed... I was just over 4 minutes slower to the top of the first hill - 44 minutes rather than 40 minutes - and 6 minutes slower to the turnaround spot - 1 hour 22 rather than 1 hour 16... had some dark thoughts during this first half - had some stomach pains and really was thinking about stopping long triathlons?! Second half was then hard... finally stopped after 1:34 for a pee - which was heaven - Gyraffe must have wondered why I had my willy out and such a big smile on my face when she came past (sorry!)... then up the hill again - keeping heart rate down and getting overtaken all the way. Was the HRM worth it? In some ways yes - I felt great at the top of the big hill - not totally knackered... However, by the time I got down the hill to T2 I felt knackered and was not so sure... about 2:47 for the bike - so 18.7mph compared to 20.1mph last year (but much more climbing this year - and much hotter and maybe more wind too?)
T2 - quick! No problems.
Run - started off too fast... quickly regretted not having a hat (didn't like my buff for some reason)... quickly started hating the hills. Splits to follow later, but basically they started on 8s and slowly got worse as the hills kicked in. Really suffered from the heat. Really felt dehydrated (should have drunk more on the bike) and had to walk the hill after the last water station (with cup in hand) and the last hill before the mile dash for home - run time of 1:47 (out in 52, home in 55) - could have been worse - I was dying at the end... must do bike and run hyrdation much better in Nice.
All in all... OK but lots of basics to remember in Nice!
Good news is that stats show I'm still (just) moving up the field:
2006 - 00:35:13 57 02:35:17 182 01:51:37 143 05:02:07 134/279
2007 - 00:35:46 ?? 02:23:57 ?? 01:46:34 152 04:46:17 103/346
2008 - 00:33:41 34 02:47:32 126 01:48:07 150 05:09:20 100/347
Superb well done to everyone who tackled the course! Not easy in that heat, nor with that new bike course. Pirate support was ace - fab! Next stop - Nice....
Will also be sure to send the Bala crew a thank you email soon - the marshalling on the bike course was top notch (including Mouse and Min of course!)
<delurks>
Fab photos, looks like fun! Now that I've been on my road bike once and learned how to change gears, I'm getting all over enthusiastic..... Bala next year sounds good!
bit late getting to me pc
got to say thanks to everyone i was so close to binning throughout the day but ur support really helped
nice to put faces to the names
now if i get my ar*e into gear i have i time to really improve on
Hi All
read the earlier part of your thread...
"Ultra AJH told me later that she caught up a man running and carrying his bike and gave him a tube of gunk for a repair but she didn't take his number either to see if he got in on the run. (We added our stories together and worked out it was the same guy.) So he was true to his word. What a fab person."
The man in question was Chris Hughes, Tri Preston. He did finish and is shortly to receive hero status.
jeez, six punctures, i though cougie had a bad run of luck at IMDE but that takes the biscuit.