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Pirate Champs 2016
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What a day. This will certainly go down in pirate history as one of the most eventful!
It was grim out there at times on the bike - the rain hosed it down on the climb then moved to the descent as well for the slower riders.
Trogs missed the finish cutoff but they kept it open and invite all pirates to join her down the finish chute. It was awesome, we had about 20 there with her. She gets her medal at the awards presentation at 11 tomorrow morning. Fair play to IM, she was a full 15 minutes or more outside the cutoff but they'd announced her as the final finisher so she got the full treatment. Just no finish time.
Well done to all finishers! Looked like a tough day with weather that should have been great!
Cosmiseratiosnns to those who didn't finish, Little Sis and Mrs D, come back stronger next time.
Lloking forward to reading the reports, I've loved seeing all the photos on FB
Well done folks, enjoy the beer
Well done to all, and specisl thanks to Richard fir getting me round the last run lap
Inspirational escapades as usual, look forward to the race reports
Well done all, finishers and non, it looked like a tough day
What was he DQ'd for, Mallowpuff? Was he another one who got stung by overzealous marshalls because he dared to get too chatty out on the bike course?
Ouch.
I have to say, we were watching on the bike course for a while just opposite the penalty box and I have never seen so many people being given penalties - there was a consistent queue of about 10 or more cyclists waiting to receive a penalty for the whole time we were there. I think alot of that will be because of the faff over the will it/won't it be a wetsuit swim, so people got caught out with the calf guard issue and with wearing nothing up top during the swim.
Well, I'm back in the office this morning, on a typical dreary autumn day, wishing I was still out there soaking up the atmosphere.
Just a quick thanks to all Pirates and Supporters for making the weekend so amazing. Both Mrs Daylight and I enjoyed meeting so many new faces, and catching up with those met previously. Sorry to those that had a hard time out there for various reasons. Well done to all the finishers.
Special thanks to Decadave for that final lap, really made a huge difference - coming in under 13h for me was a dream, and all down to you keeping us going. Sorry I wasn't around for the beer I owe you, will have to wait for next time
Good effort one and all!
Who would have though IM Wales would have better weather than IM Majorca!?
Fastest female - goblin princess
Beginner - shared Mr Digger & Mrs BP
Best improved morphed into least worst and was won by Trogs
????
Seems you can still win by being not quite as shit as last year
Hi. I was at IM Mallorca this weekend and firstly have to say thanks for the support on the run. Pirates are a good group of supporters and racers.
I'm truly gobsmacked at the DQ mentioned above, given that most of the field hastily opted for wetsuits. How on earth can anyone in a tri suit/swimming cozzie + calf guards be doing anything that's more advantageous than wearing a wetsuit? I could understand if it was non wetsuit, but not once it was wetsuit. I was majorly impressed at those that still went without (through no choice or whatever). I was quietly glad that they did allow them when I was out there on that big swim loop & I didn't feel at all over warm, just right.
no race reports yet!!!!!!!
shocking
Bunch of slackers
The rules are odd - if it's a non-wetsuit swim then swimming in just shorts is fine, but if wetsuits are optional (as was declared at 6am Saturday morning) then you need a top as well - there were quite a few penalties handed out to people in just shorts, possibly because they had no option once they'd arrived. Seems very harsh when they were very clear at the briefing that it would be a non-wetsuit swim, no mention of a final check in the morning.
As pudge says, there was a long line in the penalty box. At one point on the run I spotted they had security guys with guns in the penalty box - good to see WTC finally taking a tough stand against drafting.
Report later today if I can get my act together, SA.
In progress...its a long one to match my longest IM time
Race report, abridged version!
Swim swim swim, hmmmmm!
Bike, bike, swim on bike, flash, bang, eek, brrrrr, ow! Unclip, pedal, pedal, bugger!!
Bar!
Photos can be found here for anyone not on Facebook
Not sure if I was happy being colder and wetter on bike than in the swim.
Brief report to follow as soon as possible
still working on my report - seems to be longer than planned - mostly uninteresting drivel around me getting penalties for various acts of blatant cheating...
Well someone has to be first - and it taken me almost as long as the race itself
A bit of background first : last year I attempted IM Mallorca. It was very very hot, and I ended up with heat exhaustion and not making it out of T2 onto the run. After recovering in the Medical Tent I was then determined that I would be back to have another go in 2016, especially so when it was chosen to be the Pirate Champs. Since then I’ve questioned myself and felt like a bit of a failure, you know, could I have carried on? Should I have given it a try ?, but honestly I don’t think I would have made it very far in the run, and having seen Jonny Brownlee have a similar episode in the ITU race a few weeks ago, I know it can happen to anyone and I don’t feel so stupid now. To try and overcome the hot conditions, I managed to get a deSoto cycling jersey from the USA, which (like my arm sleeves) cools the body when it gets wet, so I was feeling more confident I could deal with the heat this time round.
Apart from a major panic when Nirvana Europe had lost the booking to ship my bike to Mallorca (and a big thanks to DaylightR who took my bike to the designated drop-off and saved my bacon) the lead up to the race was fairly stress-free after we’d waved No1 son off to Uni for the first time.
Arrived in Alcudia in the early hours of Thursday morning to find our hotel room pretty much overlooked transition, we were a bit worried it would get noisy over the next few days, but all was good. I may have checked the weather forecast a few times. Mr Frag hired a bike, and I collected mine, then we faffed about and had a leisurely ride to Port de Pollensa and back to check everything was working as it should be. In the afternoon I registered, then went for a swim , which was not the best I’ve ever done (water a bit choppy), then we went out for a meal with loads of fabulous Pirates in the evening. There may have been the odd cocktail consumed too J
Friday I checked the weather forecast again, then had a great swim in my wetsuit while Mr Frag went and played in the hills on his hired bike. IM Mallorca then tweeted out that it had been deemed a non-wetsuit swim. Ho hum. At the Race briefing there was lots of discussion about calf guards and could you wear them or not in a non-wetsuit swim? I wear mine as another bit of sun protection, so was keen to wear them, but it was a definite “no” from the race director. Ok then, I’ll go without. Went back to the hotel and sorted out my bags, then wheeled my bike down to transition, faffed about some more, then checked the weather forecast again (the odd shower was now forecast for late afternoon, which would be refreshing on the run) Another fabulous meal out with the Pirates, and my diet coke arrived in a can named “Felix” which made me smile, as in the Harry Potter books, ‘Felix felices’ is the name of the liquid luck potion – tomorrow was going to be a good day.
Race day
I slept relatively well until the alarm went off at 5, and for once I managed to eat some breakfast, as I didn’t feel too sick with nerves. We headed off to transition, and just as I was about to go in, we hear the tannoy announcing that it was now a wetsuit optional swim, cue Mr Frag handing me the track pump and legging it back to our hotel. The superstar Sherpa re-appeared and passed my wetsuit and some bodyglide under the fence. Loaded my food (fig rolls and roast potatoes) and drinks onto the bike, had a rummage in my bike bag for my calf guards, then headed to the beach. Into the wetsuit, then I joined Trogs, L’il Sis, LC and Mrs D in the 1.20-1.30 pen.
Swim
There’s not much to say about the swim except that it was 5 mins slower than last year. I didn’t have any panic attacks, and I kept my breathing under control. I wont go as far as to say I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t bad J The first loop seemed to take forever, and I was beginning to lose the will to live when the turn buoy appeared, then back down to the beach, out round the Aussie exit and into the water for the shorter second loop. Out of the water in 1.36 which is a bit disappointing, must try harder next time.
T1 11.48
Dried off as well as I could, put my ‘keep you cool’ jersey on, plus SPF 50 arm sleeves and I was off. (and it is a very long run through transition, that’s my excuse and I’m sticking with it J )
Bike : 7.51
It all started off so well….
The first 90k loop is fairly flat/rolling, and I really enjoyed it (apart from the wierd fishy smell near Ariany and the awful cabbagey smell at Sa Pobla). Roads were mostly smooth, the weather was perfect and I was eating/drinking regularly and keeping myself cool. I felt great as I went past Mr Frag at halfway at 3hrs31 (15 mins faster than last year), I knew the second loop would take me about 4 hrs, so I was on for a bike PB and to beat the cut-off by miles
Then I headed along the coast towards Port de Pollenca and got a bit of a shock – the mountains I was going towards looked like Mordor, shrouded with heavy black clouds. 10 mins later it started to rain a little, and 5 mins after that Armageddon was unleashed. It got dark and I couldn’t see more than about 10 feet ahead of me the rain was so heavy. I was cycling though inches of standing water, there was flash flooding and all the while there was very loud, very close very scary thunder and lightning. It had eased off by the start of the climb proper, and I was hopeful that I’d be dry by the top, but alas it started again about 2/3rds of the way up. I have never been so cold and wet on a bike in all my life and I was dreaming of hot chocolate. I thought about getting off, but then gave myself a stiff talking to along the lines of ‘you’re British, we’re used to rain, get on with it’. Several times motorbike officials came alongside to ask if I was OK which was reassuring. I got to the top within the cut-off, and then started the descent. Luckily for me, I’ve done this route quite a few times, so I know roughly where the hairpins are, and where the faster sections are, so I was able to overtake quite a few people on the way down. Going up through Campanet I saw a fellow pirate ahead, who turned out to be Trogs. We had a brief conversation about the utter filth we’d ridden through, and whether we’d make the cut-off or not. By my reckoning I had 2 hours to do 38 miles, which was going to be very very tight indeed. From reading the race pack, I thought the bike course was a mile short, but not going to bank on it, so I had to push push pu
Run 5.59.56
Always going to be a run-walk as I‘ve been having a lot of pain in my left knee, calf and hamstring recently, so run training has been sub-optimal. Spent the first 10 mins with Trogs putting the world to rights, then I pressed on by myself. The run is 4 x 9k full laps which go past the finish area, and on the 5th you get to run down the magic carpet. The first 2 laps were OK, the Pirate supporters were exceptional, getting anything you wanted (in my case chocolate). I felt OK, though everything was beginning to hurt. On lap 3 my garmin flashed up the magic words ‘low battery’ L so I gave it to Mr Frag. I now turned into “Pirate most obsessed by the time” as I then got paranoid that I’d miss the finish cut-off. HappyChap was a superstar, reassuring me on each lap that I had plenty of time. Mr Frag walked down the course to keep me company for a few of my walk breaks, and after what seemed like an eternity, I was collecting my 4th and final lap band. The first out and back part of the course was fairly deserted with supporters, and by now there were many athletes walking past wheeling their bikes with their finishers shirts and medals on. Coming back towards the beachfront, a bloke on a moped pulls up and says something to me, which I realise is something along the lines of ‘2 kilometers to go, run run’ he is wearing a “Race Director” t-shirt and very rapidly pisses me off. He follows me and a couple of other people, and I’m feeling quite harassed , so eventually have to say ‘don’t tell me to “run” again, you’re spoiling the end of my race’. The end is in site along the bay, I can see the red M-dot and flashing lights of the finish. I pass super supporter M&M’s Dad for the last time and there’s less than 1k to go, there are more people around now, and they’re clapping and cheering, and I’m starting to feel both emotional and epic. Before I know it, I’m running down the carpet, the Pirate supporters are going mad and I’m there at the finish. The ladies winner puts the medal round my neck, tells me I’m amazing and a volunteer wraps me in a foil blanket.
It’s over
I am an Ironman
What can I say about the Pirates? You guys ROCK. The support, love and banter is incredible – I couldn’t have done it without you all xx