This weekend saw Jen, Lara, Colette, Colin, Pete competing in the ITU World Champs Sprint Qualifier at Eton Dorney – the first draft legal race for our contingent. As Colette recalls:
‘I had no idea what to expect from my first draft legal race this morning. But I’m glad to say my 3am premonition of causing a mass pile up on a corner did not happen. Pleased with 5th in age group and 17th female overall. This should secure me a place at the Worlds (AG winner already has a PQ). But lots of areas to improve on, must get my swim faster so I don’t miss the lead bike pack again… Don’t get stuck in your wetsuit in T1…. Push harder at the start of the run….’ Well done Colette.
Colin too really made the most of ‘draft legal’ and he too came out with a great result: ‘I really enjoyed the format, once I had caught up with the lead group – albeit the catching was up was hard work. Riding in a group of 7 made for a quick time and after a swift transition, I was first onto the run. Despite nursing an achilles / calf injury I was delighted with 4th in AG – securing qualification for Cozumel.’ Well done Colin.
Jen admits being: ‘pretty nervous given that the bike leg is generally a bit wobbly for me at the best of times. But I dusted off the hefty old road bike and having removed the extra bottle carrier, speed sensor, basket from the front, etc, Chris Clay helpfully suggested I should remove the dust covers from my valves too…. I mean, in the grand scheme of things!?
Luckily for me, fellow Viceroy Lara Clay was in the same wave, so after a quick briefing before the swim start, we plunged into the rather bracing Dorney Lake with the idea of trying to keep each other in sight. This was easy for me, as I just had to follow a heavily strapped ankle! Fair to say I was a bit off the pace on the swim and the front pack seemed to be extending a pretty decent lead by the time it was time to exit the water.
Onto the bike and Lara and I tried to work together to chase down a few stragglers – this mainly consisted of me taking about a 3 second turn on the front before Lara came past to once again take most of the heat! We picked up another rider on the second lap which really helped and started to switch out pretty well (I was still massively benefiting from sticking with two way stronger riders).
Into a pretty hectic transition and out onto what seemed like a never ending out and back run….. but it did finally end and I managed to cross the line 5th in AG.’ Well done Jen.
‘All in all it was as great race and a massive thanks to Lara for providing a much appreciated back wheel – before then going on to complete the run, against doctors orders!! Legend. Who said Triathlon wasn’t a team sport?’
Lara too reflects on an astounding race (considering…): ‘I was told Monday by the surgeon not to run at Dorney or Lisbon. I’ve ruptured my peroneal tendon and have tears in my Achilles. I haven’t been able to run since March but my ankle was feeling a bit better. I decided instead, seeing as it was draft legal, to see what racing this format would be like and also see if I could work hard on the bike with the aim of helping to save Jens legs a bit for the run.
Jen and I came out of the water together, not planned, just worked out, and we set about making the most of drafting. Another girl joined us so we could share the work some more. We were pretty evenly matched. I didn’t take my pre-run gel on the bike in the hope that would stop me from running, but we overtook so many on the bike I got into transition and thought I may as well try and run a slow 5k to see how my ankle held up before Lisbon. Needless to say it was slow, my legs were wondering what was happening after not running for over 2 months! But I’m glad I completed it and now know I can run in Lisbon, even if it is slow!’
For Pete Bell, this was his first race since September last year: ‘I was definitely rusty and had forgotten the pain involved in pushing myself to the max. I had an okay swim leg – got a bit battered and my goggles completely fogged up so I really struggled to see the buoys and the exit but I came out close enough to the leaders to keep me in contention. On the bike I was fortunate to come out of transition with one other racer in my AG and we worked together for the first 2 laps. But then my legs died and I drifted away from his back wheel…a very painful 3rd lap on my own before I managed to jump on the back wheels of a couple of fast racers from the next wave that got me through to transition. Despite feeling exhausted on the bike, I actually felt like I had some running legs after T2. The first 2.5km was into the wind and my km splits were a little slow for my liking. On the turnaround I upped the pace and managed to pass a group of 3. Just ahead of me was another group of 4-5 racers in my AG and I gave all I could to try and catch them. Unfortunately the line came too soon and I ended up just at the back of that little pack. 11th in AG but just 13 secs away from 7th. If only I’d managed to push that little bit harder…’
