Get me out of here! Why am I doing this? I can’t breathe, it is bloody freezing and lots of people are trying to drown me. I’m less than 5 minutes in to a 2km swim and I really don’t want to be here. It is definitely not true what they say, it is not ‘over before you know it’, every single minute out here is miserable. Forty something minutes pass eventually, thank god, there’s the exit ramp. Find the bike, ahhhh relief, it is all quiet and peaceful and I’m back in my comfort zone.
Rewind 2.5 hours. Getting up at 4.30am is not my idea of fun at the best of times. Somehow managed to find someone I knew and borrow a set of goggles (school boy error #1). Get on the bus at 5.30 to get to the swim start, made sure everything ready for the bike and got the wetsuit on just in time for the briefing. Briefing over, jump into the water, sharp intake of breath, man this water is cold. No time given for a warm up, 30 seconds later the claxon goes off.
This was my 2nd ever triathlon. The swim on my first one seemed to go without a hitch. Not that I was particularly fast, but I didn’t feel like I might not make it. For some reason, this time I panicked, couldn’t breathe and ended up taking on more water than air.
Back on the bike, and the scenery is stunning, this is why I signed up for the race. I was following the advice of not giving it full gas, hence relaxing a little more and taking in the surroundings. I was struggling to take on much nutrition, as I was still feeling sick from the swim, but nonetheless, I was still in my happy place.
Bike leg over, and it was time for the run. Now, I’d been told to expect a hard run, and it was exactly that. Again, it was great scenery and running through the forest was really pleasant. Unfortunately, the paths turned upwards a few times. Unusually for me, the first 8 miles seemed to tick by pretty quickly. The last few miles felt like harder terrain, and I could see my mile splits slowing quite dramatically. By this point I didn’t mind, I just wanted to see the finish line, which was precisely 0.6 miles further than it should have been, not that I was counting!
So, overall did I enjoy it? Well, the swim was never going to be fun or fast for me, but I loved the bike leg. I had hoped for a slightly quicker run, but that probably reflected the level of training I’d done. It was an absolutely stunning location for a race, and I can’t wait to get back to do more training there.…..cycling that is!
Would I do another one? The stupid thing is, I probably will…..
For anyone who really cares, I finished the New Forest Middle Distance in 5:29:04 (Swim: 00:42:58, Bike: 02:49:05.45, Run: 01:57:01.20). 67th overall, 15th in age group.
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