New Forest Triathlon report
So I did the race today and am now shattered. The race was great. Well organized and well marshalled, a lovely scenic course. Great.
The water was cold, very cold. I started near the front with the ambition of drafting as much as possible around the course. The first person I tried to draft from swam away from me. After 100m I gave up on him, slowed down and drafted off of the person swimming next to me. I followed him easily for the next three buoys until he slowed down too much. I went around him for 50m or so and then tucked into someone else. I stayed with him really well but had to do three or four harder strokes to catch him every now and then. This bloke then helped me swim to the exit. I couldn’t see much as it was straight into the sun.
I think I came out of the water in about 18 mins.
T1 was not as quick as I wanted. Two issues: I stood up to put my bike shoes on. This made my calf seize up, nearly cramping. This was probably because of yesterdays bike and run. The second issue was that I spent ages trying to get my bike jacket on a wet me.
The bike was ok. It felt like I was trying to work really hard but not getting anywhere. I got overtaken by lots of people but the numbers gradually reduced. I didn’t see any drafting but I had to be careful with other people around me. For example, one person sprinted up a hill but then slowed on the downhill and it wasn’t easy to get past him without drafting.
I am guessing that my power was down by nearly 20 per cent. I found it hard to keep the intensity up, especially towards the end. That’s normal though.
In T2 I put my socks on so that took a little time. I was also a little slow, getting an extra drink.
The run was hard all the way around. I don’t think I was going particularly fast but I was going hard. The course was flat for the first 5 mins, then went up hill for the next 15! Then the route stayed reasonably hilly, with a couple of steep bits. At one of the hills, I seriously thought about walking but fortunately pursuaded myself that that would be silly.
I was glad to see the finish. I think I finished about 10 mins quicker that two years ago. The t-shirt was great. Best I have received in any race.