#Bont News
Issue 9
Welcome to issue 9 of #Bont News
Hello everyone and welcome to the first Spring edition of #Bont News, Pen-Y-Bont Tri’s (somewhat monthly!) round-up of club news,and everything pertaining to the world of triathlon. First up, a very warm welcome to new members who have joined the club since January. I’m sure you’ve had a warm PYB welcome and hope that you’ve been able to attend some of the club’s sessions and have found inspiration, motivation and camaraderie as you either begin your triathlon journey, or look to develop yourself further within the sport.
We’ve made the mistakes so that you don’t have to!!
Whether you are a seasoned racer or new to the mysteries of swim. bike, run, there are plenty of pitfalls to avoid - after all we are trying to cram 3 disciplines into one sport (4 if you include transition). What could possibly go wrong?!!
With this in mind, I set the committee a task of recounting their worst triathlon blunders so that we can learn (laugh) from their mistakes.
In the spirit of fair play and togetherness, I will hold my hand up to 2 such occurrences…
Welsh Standard Distance Champs at Parc Bryn Bach, Tredegar. The entire race was contained within the park, so the bike course was nine (yes 9!!) loops of the golf course. When I got back to T2, I thought to myself that there were a lot of bikes already racked - I wasn’t expecting to be at the sharp end of proceedings, but even so! Turns out, I’d done 10 loops instead of the 9 - d’oh! To add insult to injury, I hadn’t practised running without socks in my race shoes, nor did I Vaseline the heel cups - cue bleeding heels and bloody shoes for nearly 10K.
The very first LCW Swim was held off South Beach, Tenby. Mass swim start and I started to follow feet out into the channel towards the first buoy, except that pretty much the entire field wasn’t heading to the buoy but miles off. No-one (including the organisers!) had factored in the effect of the tidal flow between the beach and Caldey Island which runs at 3-4 knots. Chaos ensued. I think I ended up swimming over 5K and took so long my watch gave up, although I was better off than people who had to be fished out by the lifeboat - some off Giltar Point at the far end of the beach. Note to self - don’t always trust the feet you are following, remember to sight, and know the local conditions!
For the next “confession” let’s call our athlete Cervelo J, keen cyclist, likes to empty the tank etc. Anyways, competing as part of a relay, they get completely carried away on the bike leg, turning it into a complete smash-fest and therefore totally forgetting that fuelling on the bike might be a good idea - what could possibly go wrong! On getting to T2, this athlete forgot all about racking their bike and handing over the chip, and instead laid the bike on the floor and had a little sit down instead!
One of the newer committee members came out of the swim and into T1 only to forget where they had racked their bike - cue comedy triathlon gold of athlete running up and down the racking in T1 trying to find their trusty steed (which was obviously hiding!)
One more, and this is more of a look good feel good kinda deal - or perhaps more the complete opposite! One of our more experienced coaches came out of the glorious waters of Coneyfornia in a standard distance race with a glorious “sand beard” which remained for the entirety of the rest of the race - needless to say, race photos after were not ones for proud display on social media later that day!
So some take-away's…..
Always, always know the race course. A pre-race recce is a good idea (but not always possible.) At the very least, mentally rehearse/visualise each element of the race.
Having a nutrition strategy is vital. This starts with what you eat leading up to a race, then what are you going to need whilst racing? The longer you go, the more you need, but make sure your stomach can handle it - the race clock doesn’t stop because you are sat down in a portaloo, and a LD tri suit with a back zip can make things very messy if you have to extricate yourself in a hurry!
Transition, Transition, Transition- we spend so long on swim, bike, run training but how many people make a total mess of T1 and T2? These skills need practising, and at the very least, rehearse and walk through transition on the morning of the race.
Look the part, feel the part - remember you can always buy speed in triathlon, carbon is king and red is always the fastest colour (tongue firmly in cheek!)
Pro News
Many an avid YouTube follower will have been jealously watching some of the pro’s vlogging about their recent exploits on training camps in Calpe, Girona, Morocco and Club La Santa (oh it’s a tough life!), but what initially seems glamorous is in fact the reality of the daily grind of eat sleep train repeat that we are all familiar with in one way or another, except for the pro’s, it’s amplified to a 30 hour plus training week.
One of the first big Super League events of the year sees the Arena Games head to Montreal in Canada. Never ones to be accused of not understanding the principles of good marketing, the organisers have managed to “persuade”
Lionel (No Limits) Sanders to dip his toe in the very shortest of races. With his prowess over the longer distances, and not having the greatest swim in the pro field, it will be interesting to see whether his undoubted bike power will be able to make up for the swim deficit that the likes of South Africa’s Henri Schoeman will undoubtedly put into him.
Ironman racing gets fully underway in the next couple of weeks. First up is IM New Zealand in Taupo with the added interest of it being part of the Sebi Kienle “farewell tour”. Then a week later, IM South Africa piques UK watchers interest as a certain Mr. Alistair Brownlee should be on the start line. After a very mixed year last year with both multiple injuries and a victory in IM Kalmar which saw him record a UK best over the distance, AB will be hoping to stamp his WC qualification early. Anyone else think that if he gets to start line fit and healthy in Nice in September, that course and climate will suit him better than Kona? Look out also for newly Trek sponsored Fenella Langridge, who will be at the sharp end of the swim, and always likes to ride away on the bike.
The PTO continues to develop its now much more global race series. They had already announced a first race in Asia in the guise of Singapore (although coming so close to the IM 70.3 world champs, it will be interesting to see how deep the field will be). Just this week, they have announced the PTO European Open in Ibiza on May 6th. As an early season hit out, this should attract most of the top names, especially with the prize money on offer.
Written and created by Alun Wood.
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