Take two!
Team ‘Ladies That Tri’ were all set for their next adventure! The Team today was Sam Askey, Gayle Forster, Megan Bell and I. Helen Rodgers unfortunately had to pull out at the last minute due to a shoulder injury, but very kindly came along to support us and marshal, as did her daughter Emily.
We set off early from Durham, which turned out to be good as during the drive up the A1 the bikes slipped sideways on the bike rack!.. three times! On the third time Helen had the cunning plan to put one of the bikes inside the car and have only two on the rack. We pulled over, and Sam immediately jumped out and expertly got into action, confidently asking ‘Shall I take the front wheel off?’ Get in! Once all was secure Emily sat next to the bike in the very back of the car with the many bags and the cakes may have been squished by my bike! Emily chatted away happily. We talked about the diving boards at the Stanhope Outdoor pool. I applaud her no-fear attitude. I think I’ll be sticking to the small slide in the baby pool.
And so we arrived bikes intact! Megan met us there and after registering, we all took our cycles and stuff round to transition on the grass outside the pool. I was number 17, straight after Anita Dunseith’s husband. Anita was also there supporting him! Anita wanted to see my bike, ‘Is it that one?’ she said pointing to a rather impressive looking blue machine…ha ha! ‘ No, its this one I said’ ‘Oh! She said, looking at my bike, ‘But where is your water bottle?’ and I pointed out my extra large water bottle standing next to the bike and the box of squished cakes that I had sneaked into transition!
After a thorough and helpful race briefing by Sue Heppell, the race organiser, numbers 1 to 10 lined up ready to get into the pool! Helen kindly sat in the viewing area to take photos! The rest of us waited around the poolside. Megan, Sam and Gayle all had high numbers-in the 40’s, so I bid my good lucks and lined up myself as it was getting near to my turn! Anita’s husband was off, and then it was a shout of ‘10 seconds to go’ from the marshal, and then a ‘5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Go!’for me! My plan was to swim the first length slowly, then to increase pace and swim the last length hard. This plan was because you aren’t able to warm up in the pool before the race, and last time I had set off fast and then felt like I could not breath after two metres! So my swim went much better this time, and being more familiar with the pool this time I felt more confident as I knew what the bottom looked like. I got out of the pool, waved to the others and pattered into the transition area!
T1 Attack! Had been the plan. I had planned to start counting -the idea being that I had to be out of transition by 30! But this did not happen as I found I couldn’t count and concentrate at the same time! Instead I just focussed on the task in hand and just went as quick as I could. Got the helmet on the wrong way round at first, ha ha, but other than that all was good!, and I grabbed the bike and ran out!
On mounting my bike the first problem was that my bum slid around on my bike saddle like a penguin on ice! Last time I had worn a swimming costume and the skin-saddle friction had kept my bum in place. But this time I had opted for a swimming costume with short legs, meaning there was only swimming costume in contact with the saddle ! I charged up the hill cranking up the gears whilst sliding about! Getting the speed up was good and it was lovely to be out on a warm summers evening riding along the post rush hour roads of Ponteland. The sun was still up casting long shadows. I was really enjoying it and had to remind myself it was a race, and to keep on it! I caught up two cyclists and over took! Then saw three more in the near distance and was gaining on them! I caught them up, overtook, but then as I changed down gears to go round a roundabout the chain came off my bike! Oh no! I yanked my bike to the side of the road, turned it upside down and in a flash got the chain back on..but not fast enough for the 5 people I had just passed to now pass me! I felt so relived that this mishap had been within my only area of bike expertise! The bike I had before this one was a £50 hunk of iron purchased for it’s ‘strong and stable’ quality. It weighed 50 tonnes. It was so ‘strong and stable’ that it didn’t go up hills, and didn’t go very well down them either as downhill meant chain fall-off. Every trip resulted in oily hands!
I peddled on furiously and was pleased to pass those riders again. Up to the top of the road, left turn and more uphill! I pushed on breathing heavily. I was afraid to change gear on the left side in-case the chain came off again, so stuck to using the gears on the right side and hoped for the best! I was going as fast as I could but one after another four cyclists overtook me! Oh no! I doubted I’d see them again as soon the route would be all downhill, and downhill cycling was not my forte! I saw it as a pure ‘face the fear’ challenge! Soon I was onto that said downhill road, with its areas of lumpy tarmac (filled in potholes). A few turns, waits at roundabouts, onwards and the leisure centre was insight! Yes!
T2 I am extremely proud of ( if I do say myself !) I whizzed in, put down bike, helmet off, top off and ran ! One nano second! Way hay! (OK slight exaggeration but it was sooo much better than last time!) I even forgot about the cakes! I pegged it out and onto the run route.
Great to be running! It seemed so much simpler and easier than swimming or cycling! I ran down the footpath, past quite a few dog walkers this time , and kept going. Then much to my surprise, as I reached the top of the path I saw ahead two of the cyclists that had passed me! Could I possibly be gaining on them? I was! Even better, as I turned the corner on to the road I saw all of the 4 riders who had overtaken me on the bike in a line ahead! No way! Yes way! This gave me a boost and I worked hard and ran past each one! No one ahead in sight now, oh dear, this meant navigation, but actually it was fine as I remembered the route, and I also knew it was not far, so I kept the pace up. As I ran down the hill I spotted Megan, closely followed by Sam, running towards me at the start of their run! Waves and cheers as we passed each other! There was the leisure centre, past the marshals, (bikes and runners everywhere!), round the corner and sprint finish up the finishing funnel! …And collapse and sit down!
After I got my breath back I stoo
d with Emily, handed some squashed cakes, and then Helen came round and we were all there to cheer Megan, Sam and Gayle in! They all had big smiles on their faces! So pleased they had enjoyed it. It had been Sam and Gayles first triathlons! So super well done for them! After celebrations we gathered ourselves and our paraphernalia and retreated to a Costa coffee for recovery!
I really enjoyed this race, just as much as the first time. But this time I felt more confident. It has also made me realise how complicated triathlon can be, so many things can go wrong! One area it highlighted for me is that I would like learn more bike stuff, like taking wheels off and mending punctures, using gears right etc. It could all be very helpful! And I think Sam would be the person to ask!
Extract from the book Running My Way by Tamsin Imber with permission from Pitch Publishing.