In the run up to this event, I had been genuinely worried that my ankle wasn't going to be up to the challenge of running the 5 km leg of the try a tri, although it turns out, my physio is a miracle worker...
For once I actually managed to make it to a race venue on time to get myself registered and sorted well before I was due to end which was a nice feeling!
The bike racking was a little more crowded that I had expected, but thank fully the Whittle Fit training session had covered this eventuality, so I took an extra few minutes just making sure that my kit was all in the right order despite the constricted space. I was stationed next to a girl who was very nervous, it being her first triathlon, and I realised that my experiences from last year had prepared me quite well and kept me calm throughout the set up.
The swim went as well as can be expected really. It is still my weakest discipline by a very long way and I had always know that I would be the last, or very close to, person in the pool after the 400m. I felt pretty good throughout and avoided making the mistake I had made in the aqualthon of going out to fast and then "blowing up" mid way through.
The first transition went really well, a marked improvement over the disasterous first attempt a few months back. I opted to go without socks for the bike ride as there seemed little point in wasting time putting them on and getting them wet prior to the run.
The bike segment was the most enjoyable portion of the race. I think I have made a lot of progress over the last few months due to the increased frequency of the longer saturday morning rides and partly due to starting to ride to work.
I managed to make up most of the places that I had lost during the swim and felt pretty strong throughout the hills. I started to get cramp sporadically in my calves throughout the ride so I tried to take on as much fluid as I could before the run section, but didn't have an opportunity to stretch out which I would have liked.
The second transition was as speedy as the first, although me being me, was far too involved to remember to switch my garmin to record the transition time.
The run section was the part I was most worried about as my ankle had still been a bit iffy through friday, more so because of the tenderness rather than flexibility or tightness. I had spent a few minutes re-taping my calf with the rock tape that I picked up last week prior to the swim section and luckily it was still on!
I started the run section badly, cramp having set in almost the moment I jumped off the bike, but began to ease up after the first km or so. It felt good to get out running again as obviously I hadn't done any for the last few weeks whilst giving my ankle time to mend.
I managed to pick off the runner in front of me fairly quickly and sighted on one of the guys that had been in my swimming wave and had pipped me on the bike following me taking a corner very badly. I managed to keep closing the gap during the up hill sections, which is arguably my specialty, and I could feel the benefit that mountain biking has been having as the usual sense of fatigue kicked in at the half way point.
I managed to pass the guy in front at the 3km mark and from that point it was simply a case of trying to push myself as far as I could. I got a nasty stitch not long after this point which became very painful in my right side and unfortunately put me off my stride for the remainder of the run.
My ankle was thankfully pain free throughout the run and I managed to pull off a 4:09/km average throughout the run to finish in 1:00:57 which I am really pleased with.
I had hoped that the try a tri would be a gentle but significant entry into the triathlon arena and I wasn't disappointed. It was a fantastic experience and event and has made me optimistic about the coming season.
I can now finally call myself a triathlete!
