The 1st Race : The Race

Course map for 2013 Blenheim Palace Triathlon

Swim (4oom)

I had moved out to far side of the swim start to try and keep out of the way (the last thing I wanted was to be in the middle of the rough and tumble). I bobbed up and down waiting for the start, the hooter sounded and off we all went. I started front crawl but struggled getting my head down into the water as it felt so cold.  After a while my shoulders started to hurt so I broke into breast stroke. This not only allowed me to rest my shoulders but also to have a look at where I was and make sure I was swimming in the right direction. To my surprise I was swimming in a relatively straight line and it the right direction. I continued with this pattern for the whole swim. It was especially useful when talking the only turn round a buoy to head towards the finish. As I got to slipway where the swim finished I was clambered out of the water. Swim done!

 

Swim start

Swim time – 10:16 Swim position – 195 

 Transition 1 (400m uphill run + change from swim to bike)

So out of the water and straight into an uphill run (hang on I thought the bike was next) from the lake to the courtyard where my bike was racked. It is a tough little run but there is coconut matting down to save your feet. I managed to get the zip on my wetsuit undone but hadn’t wriggled out of the top half while running. The best bit about this short run is the 50m from the top of the hill into the courtyard as there is always a big crowd to cheer you on and give you a lift. I jogged through an arch and emerged into the courtyard to be confronted by rows of bikes. I found my bike with few problems as it was opposite the arch I had entered by. I sat on the floor to get the wetsuit off as I didn’t fancy falling over. I tidied up after myself and got my bike gear on. I grabbed my bike and jogged out towards the mount/dismount line. Transition 1 done!

T1 time – 6:27 T1 position – 212 

 

Bike (13.2km, 2 Laps)

The bike leg has a nice downhill start so I managed to get some speed up. It’s then straight into the smaller of the 2 hills on the course. This hill is small but even though I have looked at the course on line I wasn’t expecting to start so soon into the bike. A short downhill and your into the woods and on the second and slightly bigger hill. After the descent of this hill it’s over a cattle grid and onto the exposed back side of the course where there was a strong head wind. Now came the interesting bit of the bike ride. There has been an accident the day before the race and the bridge spectators were supposed to use to cross the bike course was out of action. Everyone had to jump off their bikes push them over where the spectators were crossing and jump back on again. I managed this ok on both laps. The second lap felt faster than the first but I was getting overtaken by people on better bikes the whole time (maybe they were fitter as well). After leaping off and back onto my bike a second time I had finished the course and was at the dismount line. Bike done!

On the bike course

Bike time – 37:13 Bike position – 254 

 

Transition 2 (change from bike to run)

T2 was easy again quickly spotted my rack position. The bike went back on the pole with no problems. The only problem was I knew where to exit transition at I just wasn’t sure how to get there. A friendly steward was on hand to put me right and I was off on the run. Transition 2 done!

T2 time – 2:42 T2 position – 310 

 

Run (3.1km, 1 Lap)

As you exit transition to start the run at Blenheim you have to run over a bridge over the bike course (a 2^nd undamaged bridge ). The up and down ramps on it added further to heavy legs from the bike. You then head towards the finish and hang a left about 200m from it get onto the main run loop. It starts with a gentle down hill section to the far end of the loop. Just after turning back towards the palace there was a water station. I took some water. Most of it ended up all over me rather than in me. As the palace came into site I started running up hill that was also the start of the cycle course. It was a fun downhill section on the bike that turned into a unwelcome uphill on the run. To make it worse the last section of it is ran on grass which sapped any energy left in my legs. I was then back on straight that started the run but this time didn’t need to turn left to start another lap. This is the point where the competitor in me kicked in and I attempted a sprint finish. It was more like stumbling slightly faster than before but it got me to the finish. Run done and 1^st triathlon done!

Near the start of the run

Run time – 18:28 Run position 234

 

Medal from 2013 Blenheim Palace Triathlon

Total Time & Full Breakdown

	Time	Position
Swim	10:16	195
T1	6:27	212
Bike	37:13	254
T2	2:42	310
Run	18:28	234
Total	1:15:03	246

The 1st Race : Preparation

The Brick

The 2013 Blenheim super sprint triathlon was rapidly approaching. While I was training I had done some research on preparation and what to expect for my 1^st race. All of the articles I read in magazines or on the internet suggested doing a bike to run ‘brick’ training session at least once before the race. So 2 weeks before I decided to do a brick of the approximate race distance (13.2 km bike and 3.1km run). Finding a time when I could do a pool swim before the cycling had proved impossible. Before setting off I setup my bike to run transition in my back yard with my trainers ready and somewhere to rack my bike. I set off on the bike at my intended race pace and enjoyed a trouble free ride. Returning home I dismounted racked the bike and got my trainers on. This is where the pain started. As I started running my legs felt very heavy, it was like running in deep mud. By the time got half way round my legs felt more free and I was able to run the rest of the way in relative comfort. The brick was done and I was ready.

Pre race cycling brick GPS track

Pre race running brick GPS track

The Day Before The Race

I had booked in to the Travelodge at a service station about 10 miles from Blenheim where some of the others I was doing the race with were staying for the night before the race. At lunchtime I packed the car up with everything I needed for the race (double and triple checking nothing had been forgotten). I had an easy drive from West Yorkshire down to Oxfordshire and arrived in good time. By the time I had checked in I was ready for food. We ate at a nearby Italian restaurant so pre-race pasta was the order of the day washed down by 1 beer (no matter how temping more were). I was back in my room for 10pm. I knew I didn’t have to be up to early as my wave was not until after lunch. I didn’t want to late as  some of the lads were in the first wave of the day and I wanted to cheer them on. Also I fancied having a good look around the site before my wave. Sleep didn’t come easily as my nerves about want was to come the next day built up but I got a good 7 hours in the end.

Blenheim 2013 Triathlon Transition In The Palace Main Courtryard

Race Day

I woke before my alarm was due to go off and couldn’t drop off again so got up. I had 2 porridge pots with dried fruit for breakfast which I had brought with me. After getting dressed and picking up a light lunch from the service station I packed the car back up and setoff for Blenheim. I got there in time to see the last of my mates in transition 1. It was a highlight of the day as he fell over taking his wetsuit off and nearly broke the no nudity in transition rule! By the time I had eaten and they had finished my wave start was getting closer. I got my trisuit on (not easy in a portable toilet) and racked my bike. I found a good spot in transition that I could easily identify. I setup my bike and laid out my other gear in front of it. Lastly I struggled into my wetsuit and grabbed my goggles. It was time to make my way to the race start for the swim briefing. The nice man doing the briefing told us a story about the biggest pike in the lake to ease any pre-swim nerves and we were ushered into the water. There I was bobbing up and down at the start line of my first triathlon it was now or never! 

Blenheim Triathlon 2013 Swim Briefing

Getting Started : Running

For most people I would imagine running it the easiest element to train for when they are doing their 1^st triathlon. Not me, when I decided to do a triathlon I knew running would be my nemesis and I was right. When I was growing up my Mum ran marathons and younger brother was a good junior club runner. As there is only 18 months between us most of the time if one of us did a sport the other was dragged along and they had a go as well. So from an early age I did my fair share of sprinting and cross country running with my little brother and I was as terrible as he was good. When I found rugby suited my build much more I stopped athletics training and running became just part of the game I played.  Don’t get me wrong I wasn’t a good rugby player but I could be part of the team and my physical size gave me advantage. For many years running was something to be hated and feared for me during pre-season rugby training.

 

New Balance Trainers Used In My First 2 Triathlons - Still Get Used For Walking The Dog Now

  By the time I got around to starting my run training I had been swimming and cycling for a while so at least my general fitness had improved from when I decided to do the triathlon. When I was up in Cumbria at Mum's the Christmas before the triathlon I visited the New Balance factory shop for some new trainers (it’s 2 miles down the road from my Mums house). I had no more excuses and the race was only 12 weeks away so I had to start running. I checked the distances and I was only going to have to run 2.7km so that’s the distance I was going to run in training. Two mornings a week before work I started trudging around the local streets on a course I worked out on google maps. I would start off thinking this isn’t that bad. By the time I was half way round the course I was sweating like a pig and at the finish was almost on my knees. I did get better and I did extend my little run course slightly to try and build stamina. I still didn’t enjoy my run training. My swimming training was enjoyable and I have always found cycling fun so I endured the running. By the time it came to race day I knew I could run the required distance, it would be slow and painful but I could do it.

 

GPS track of early training run - generated via Endomondo Android app on Sony Xperia S smart phone

  When it comes to cost I suppose running was the cheapest of the 3 sports to get started with. As I said I got my trainers from the New Balance factory shop and they always have good reductions on bigger sizes (my feet being a UK size 12). I already had shorts and tops I could use to run in and my cycling waterproof was perfect for wet days. The only other thing I did get was a hi vis vest for early morning and evening runs. Total expenditure to get started running was about £50.

Getting Started : Cycling

  The cycling element of the triathlon was the least daunting element for me at the start of the process. I have been able to ride a bike since I was a kid and have had a go at different kinds of cycling over the years. I had a 15 year old mountain bike and a helmet sat in the shed so all I had to do was get the bike working and I was on my way. It sounds so simple but my bike had other ideas. Firstly both inner-tubes had to be replaced as they had perished, then the brake blocks (a job that appears to require you to have 3 hands) and finally a lot of fiddling to get the gears working again. After a week or so of getting oily I was on the road.

15 year old Diamondback Wildwood mountain bike I used for my 1st triathlon.

  I kept my 1st ride to a short and off the road, 10km's to work and back down a local cycle path. Everything went well, the bike worked, my legs worked but my bum hurt as I had not got any cycling shorts. I needed to spend a bit more cash to get some clothing a saddle bag and repair kit. This was done by visiting my local Aldi (discount supermarket for those outside the UK) when they had their cycling event on and a trip to Sports Direct. Lastly I decided on a couple of upgrades to the bike to improve its speed and how I was riding it. The first upgrade was to get some new tyres. I changed knobbly mountain tyres to some slick tyres that would roll better on the road. The second change was to get some strapless toe clips to keep my feet in place as I wasn't ready to commit to clip-less peddles and cycling shoes.

  All I needed to do now was to cycle as much as I could to get fit. As the weather got warmer I started going out and doing 20km rides at weekends. My thoughts being I only had to do 15km in the triathlon so this was a great distance to train with. Also as the days got longer I was able to take advantage of not having to give my wife a lift to work on Wednesdays and Fridays when she doesn't work by swapping from car to bike for the commute. It was only 5km each way but helped build up my fitness. I was using my smart phone GPS and the Endomondo app to track my rides so knew I was getting quicker as the weeks went by. When the triathlon came around I knew I would be fine on the bike. I wouldn't be the quickest or the slowest. I wouldn't be on a fancy bike but I would get round and would enjoy it.

GPS track of early training bike ride - generated via Endomondo Android app on Sony Xperia S smart phone

  So what did getting started on my bike cost me? Well I already had the bike so that was free. The new tyres were about £30 for the pair and inner tubes £5 each. The strapless pedal clips were another £10 and the cycling clothing came to about £50. Finally came the saddle bag, repair kit and oil for about £20. So without having to get a bike the cost of getting started was about £120 it total.
   

Getting Started : Swimming

 For the first time triathlete I think swimming is the is the hardest of the 3 legs to get your head around. Everyone can run and everyone can ride a bike but an open water swimming with a mass start that's a scary thought when you've never done it before. In some way I was lucky I have been able to swim since I was 3 years old as my dad used to manage a local swimming pool and at least a couple of times a week we would swim rather than be taken to a child minders. Confidence in the water would not be a problem. Saying that I never got on with front crawl and couldn't swim more than a length but could swim breaststroke forever.

  I started swimming again by going to a local pool that had a Sunday morning lane swim where I did breaststroke interspersed with spluttering lengths of crawl for a few months. As one of my fellow swimmers pointed out 'your not very good at that, you might need lessons'. I had to agree with him if I wanted to swim my first triathlon front crawl and have a decent first leg lessons were required. It was not easy admitting was going to need help and needed to learn to swim all over again. I searched the timetables of my local pools and found a Monday night swimming class for adults who wanted to improved their front crawl. I phoned them and booked 10 weeks of 1 hour group lessons with Nick who is still my swimming coach nearly 2 years later.

  The lessons started from the very basics of front crawl using floats, flippers and pull buoys to isolate elements of the stroke and allow me to improve. Nick has a certain way he likes people to swim and as he is a former triathlete himself it fitted in with exactly what I needed. The other great thing about the lessons was there were so many other people with exactly the same problems and goals as me. We encouraged and supported each other and I still swim with a number of my classmates now. After the 1st 10 weeks I was progressing well and still had a while to go to my triathlon so I booked another 10 weeks that would up to the race. I talk to Nick about my race and as it was 'only' a 400 meter swim he said I would be fine with where I had got to. 

  Before that 1st race I was only swimming 1 hour a week but it was enough to get my stroke, swim fitness and confidence to where it needed to be to have a go at triathlon. For that race I hired a swimming wetsuit from a local water sport shop. It's important to get a swimming wetsuit not a normal one as they are made from different materials and cut differently for swimming. Before the race I did a test open water swim at a local lake where Wakefield Triathlon club put on open water swim sessions through the summer Wakefield Tri Club Open Water Swimming. When I reached the start line for the swim I was confident I would survive and had a good idea what to expect. It had take 6 months to get my swimming to this stage. I wouldn't be the best swimmer in my wave but also I wouldn't be the worst. 

  What did it cost me to get my swimming to this point? Well the pool where I was learning front crawl were doing lots of offers on the swimming lessons I needed so over the 6 months the lessons cost no more than £60 when they should have been £5 per lesson. I had some swimming shorts that I used on holiday but quickly traded them in for some Jammers (cycling shorts for swimmer in) from sport direct about £6 a pair (I am now on my 3rd pair). Finally I paid about £15 for Aqua Sphere goggles from Amazon which I am still using. So total cost for swimming build up to my 1st race about £80 not bad really.