All things considered – IRONMAN 70.3 Valencia

Now that I’ve had a few days to decompress – all things considered – IRONMAN 70.3 Valencia was a good day out. Not as competitive as hoped when I signed up in October, and a bit disappointed to go over 5-hours, but nevertheless a decent performance considering the amount of training under my belt.

My last race was in September 2024, Poznań 70.3, where I was in a good position until melting on the run. After that, triathlon had to take a back seat as life took priority. Work was the major focus in 2025, renewing my research funding. Fortunately this went well so by October 2025 I was back at it with a great week’s cycling in Mallorca.

The sun coming up over Malvarrosa beach

But then, unexpectedly, I had to step back again and focus all my energy on supporting Jacky as she underwent major surgery in January. Fortunately, this also went well but now I had to switch to the DWYC training plan – Do What You Can.

The club duathlon in late February was a good boost – there is still some speed in the legs, at least over a short distance, but now it’s March and the clock is ticking. A few days R&R in Anglesey kick-started longer rides on the TT bike, then a sneaky week off work for some last-minute cramming.

All things considered, ambitions were put to one side and my goal was to get around, hopefully with a bit of style: execute all phases well and no capitulation on the run. To give Jacky some idea of where I would be when, I suggested splits of 35 mins for the swim; 5 mins each for T1 and T2; 2.5 hrs on the bike and a 1:45 run, to finish in about 5 hours. In the end, I wasn’t far off expectations, but at 20^th in my age group, I was a long way from the front. You still need to deliver a ~4:30 to get near the M55-59 age group podium. Indeed, I was super-impressed with my speedy peers, the winner finishing in under 4 hrs 17 minutes.

 

	Poznan 2024	Estimates	Actual	3rd 55-59
Swim	31:43	35:00	34:30	30:36
T1	4:05	5:00	5:37	4:42
Bike	2:29:01	2:30:00	2:34:33	2:21:09
T2	1:55	5:00	4:44	3:32
Run	1:44:02	1:45:00	1:47:20	1:32:52
Total	4:50:46	5:00:00	5:06:42	4:32:49

 Splits

And so it begins: Sunday morning, 19^th of April 2026 and I’m standing on Malvarrosa beach with the sun coming up over the horizon. It’s going to be another beautiful day in Valencia. For the third edition of this race, they moved the swim from the harbour to the open sea. Thankfully there is no wind so the water is calm.

The PROs go off in mass starts at 7:15 and 7:25, with the age-grouper rolling starts kicking off at 7:40. I’m confident in my swim, so self-seed towards the back of the first pen, the “30 minute” wave. Good call, the 35, 40 and 45 min pens are rammed. 

The DJ starts blasting out AC/DC’s Thunderstruck and it does the trick – finally I’m feeling pumped! At 7:47 I’m off. Not swimming just yet, it takes a good 45 seconds to cross the sand and shallows to get to deeper water.

I can’t see a thing! We are swimming directly into the sun and the water is almost opaque due to the churning sand. But no bother; focus on relaxed breathing and looking for that first turn buoy. Smile to myself – this is what it’s all about! After that, plain sailing and I’m out of the water in under 35 mins.

Out of the water - job done

T1 was long! 650 meters from standing up in the shallows to the mount line. But it went smoothly – a big advantage of getting into the water early. Found my blue bike bag easily enough, wet suit slipped off nicely, then found my racked bike just fine, aided by Jacky standing right next to it on the other side of the fence, shouting encouragement. The surface is nicely matted so running barefoot is no problemo! Indeed, overall organisation of the race was fantastic, as you can expect from IRONMAN. Scoot mount, feet in and we’re off. 

The first 1.4 km takes you away from the beach to a 180-degree turn, providing an opportunity to tighten the shoes, adjust the helmet, put the visor in place, and get some fluids/nutrition onboard. Then it’s TT heaven: 10 k of glorious flat tarmac running straight up the coast, perfect for getting in the mood.

Then a turn inland to start a 20 km section that gently rises ~300m to the highest point in Nàquera. Apart from a few very short sections near the top, it’s not steep so it’s aero action all the way. 

Over the top at Nàquera

This was the first time racing my 1x12 SRAM set up and the gearing was just fine. Indeed, the bike was a joy to ride, thanks to a lot of tinkering and upgrading over the winter: a freshly waxed RED chain; a swanky new Parcours disc wheel; new tubeless Corsa Speed Pro tyres. I also installed a nice TriRig between-the-arms system to get two bottles up front. To keep up with the Joneses, I just had to get an EZgains behind-the-saddle system, using it to stash my flat kit.

Over the top at Nàquera, caution on a few hairpins, then let rip on a wonderfully long, sweeping descent – living the dream! This was awesome: it was warm, but not too hot, and zero wind; the roads were smooth, all closed to traffic by law in Spain; and not congested thanks to the rolling start and being out on the course relatively early.

On the final 20k stretch back into town, I was overtaken by a few grupettos. I get it; towards the end of the bike leg, people are tired, and with a few thousand participants a bit of drafting is inevitable. But I didn’t come here for a group ride. I had to stop pedalling several times so as not get sucked along, which was rather irritating when the packs then slowed down!! 

One particularly egregious case of drafting prompted me to suggest that the offender might like to suck something else belonging to the guy in front of him, not just his wheel. Eventually I’d had enough so put the hammer down to break away. It worked and the final stretch was an enjoyable solo ride in T2.

The lack of course knowledge meant that the dismount line caught me by surprise, so I didn’t have time to get both feet out of my shoes on time. No bother, safely off the bike in just over 2.5 hrs.

Transition was quiet so easy enough to find my racking spot, red run bag and clear bench space to get into my Hoka Rockets. With the swim and bike legs safely navigated, most of the unknowns are behind me. However, the hardest part is still to come. 

The Turia river used to run through the centre of Valencia out into the Mediterranean. But after a major flood in 1957, it was diverted to the south. The old riverbed then sat fallow until 1986 when it was turned into a park rather than a transport corridor. Now an amazing 10 km long public space runs through the city, filled with exotic trees and lots of spaces for walking, cycling, outdoor sports, morning yoga etc. When I visited Valencia some 10 years ago, this park blew me away and it was a major motivation to sign up for this race.

Race course

The legs felt ok, but it was going to be hot so the number one aim was a cooling strategy. At the first aid station, I grabbed multiple cups of water, pouring most of it over my head and down my tri suit. Later I also started shoving ice cubes down my tri suit. At the second aid station, same again but also a Maurten gel for carbs. This alternating routine worked well, but eventually my limited training got the better of me.  

Part 1, for the first 9 k, I held an average pace of ~4:50 mins per k, not great but not too bad either. Part 2, over the next 5 k it started to get hard and my pace dropped to ~5:00. At the end of the first lap, it was great to see Jacky cheering me on, so stopped for a quick kiss and then back at it. Part 3, the last 6-7 k was a slog; I kept moving, cooling and fuelling, but my average pace dropped further, to 5:30.

Made it!

Across the finish line, I was pretty trashed; had to sit in the shade for a good 10 minutes before I could move again. Fair to say, I gave it my best, and I’m pretty happy with the overall execution. I swam, biked and transitioned well. The big lesson from Poznań was the need for a cooling strategy on the run, and that worked well. I just didn’t have enough credit in the Bank of Fitness to hold it together for 21k on the run. But again – all things considered – a respectable performance at a great race.

Immediately after, my thoughts were as they always are: it’s finally time to retire, I’m getting too old for this. But a few days later, I’m not so sure? There is still some fire in the belly and I’d love to see what I can do with a bit of consistent training.

Ironman Poznan 70.3

The rationale: following a 10-year abstinence, it was back to an Ironman™ branded event. My last outing was the inaugural Ironman Mallorca, a race so rammed that the swim was a fight to survive and the bike a horrendous draft-fest. Since then, my racing $ have been spent elsewhere: Challenge, Outlaw and small events. But after a high-speed, pothole-induced, double-blowout at Outlaw Half last year, I once again yearned for smooth Euro tarmac. Also, with rolling swim starts now de rigueur, perhaps it was time to end my ‘boycott’. Delighted to say that Poznan 70.3 did not disappoint – a great race, from gun to tape.

Full gas on the bike (click for larger images)

The training: after my double hernia repair in December, I was starting from a low base and had to tread carefully, slowing re-building strength, speed and fitness. Swimming was going well, thanks to all the work I put in for BEST Fest. Short-course bike and run speeds were returning, evidenced by an age-group win at the Wilmslow sprint, and smashing it around the Mallorca Olympic. But did I have the endurance for longer course racing? 

Brief respite at an aid station

Final Preparation: Friday - arrive in Poznan; register at HQ. Saturday – Poznan parkrun; drive out to Kiekrz, rack bike in T1; back into town; deposit run bag in T2; race briefing; early to bed. Sunday – over 600 athletes descend on platform 10 at Poznan Glowny to catch the 7:30 Ironman Express to Kiekrz, the excitement is building; back into T1, set up bike; brief warm up; don wetsuit; and finally, watch the male pros go off in a mass start at 9:30, followed by the women a few minutes later.

Slipping to 6th. Hats off to Johan Ewald, an 'ok' swim, followed by a good bike and a barnstorming run. 

In the moment: lining up in the start pen, the music was so loud that my solar plexus was thumping! Not great for calming the pre-race nerves, so it was a relief to get in the water and escape the madness! As promised, for the age-groupers, it was a rolling start, with six athletes entering the lake every 10 seconds, beach-start style. At 21.4 degrees it was very nice, and with plenty of space I quickly settled into a good rhythm. No dramas, overtook plenty along the way and emerged in 31:xx, a great start to the day. After a smooth T1 it was out on to a ‘perfect’ bike course. The roads were fully closed, and the tarmac was beautiful - not a single pothole in 90k! The single out-and-back loop meant very little congestion or drafting. With a slight tailwind, it felt fast, and indeed, the first 40k took just over an hour. After the turn around, the headwind slowed things down plus I faded a bit in the last 20k. Dismounted in under 2.5 hrs off a normalised power of 185W, job done. Another smooth transition, and I felt good on the run, clipping along at a nice pace, at least for the first few kilometres. But then reality struck: it was pretty hot and I just didn’t have the depth of fitness to follow a solid bike with a strong run. I knew I was losing time and field position, but no bother, I kept grinding and before you know it, I crossed the finish line in 4:50:46.

Pre-race prediction was that if someone could smack out a 4:31 they'd defo win the M55-59 AG. My target was 4:45, but in the end that would only have been good enough for 4th, so this year was faster and/or more competitive than 2022 and 2023

The race: based on the two previous (and only) editions of this race, the podium slots in the M55-59 age group were won in times of 4:35 – 5:00. As I was shooting for a 4:45-ish, maybe I could be in the mix? My swim turned out to be the fastest in the AG, as were my transitions, so coming out of T1, I was in first place. At 5.8k into the run, I had only dropped one spot, but by 17.4k, I had dropped another two, and agonisingly, in the last few kilometres I dropped another two to finish 6^th. The irony is that the swim used to be my weakest discipline, while the run was my weapon.

The afterglow: the competitor in me was initially bummed to have dropped out of the mix, but upon reflection I had a great race. 2024 started from a low base and the data show I hadn’t regained full fitness: last year, my CTL and FTP peaked at 122 and ~240W respectively, whereas ahead of this race, they topped out at 89 and ~220W.  And while the early season focus on BEST Fest meant my swim was in good shape, and while my overall race execution was very good, I had only just started to feel strong on the bike, and I knew I hadn’t done enough run volume. But to be fair, I think I had done as much training as my life allowed, so taking all this together, to end up only ~5 mins off target was not bad at all. So yeah, overall, pretty happy.

After peaking in 2023, I lost a lot of fitness due to smashing it up short course racing, an enjoyable off-season and a lack of motivation ahead of going under the knife. So 2024 started from a low base but 8 months of consistent and conservative training paid off and I was in pretty good shape come September 1st. (Blue = fitness (CTL); Pink = fatigue (ATL); Yellow = form (TSB))

The recommendation: what a great race, defo recommend, 9/10! The overall organisation was really good, especially the train ride out to the lake on race morning. I really enjoyed the civilised swim, the bike course was perfect, and the 4-lap run course was good for aid stations and supporters. I’d do it again just for the bike course. Poznan is a very nice place to visit, and the next day, exploring the old town with my number 1 supporter was a great way to spend our 29^th wedding anniversary.

BEST Fest 2024, 26th to 31st May, Colònia de Sant Jordi, Mallorca

The 2024 BEST Fest swimming festival – the 10^th Anniversary edition - involved seven events over six days, three Colonia Classic races interleaved with three Challenge swims, finished off with a 4x 500m relay race. All seven sea swims take place in the beautiful bays around Colònia de Sant Jordi, a small town on the southern coast of Mallorca, about a 35-minute drive from Palma airport. 

Race headquarters is the BEST Centre, a small sports complex founded by two former Olympic swimmers. Centred around a wonderful 50m open-air pool, it hosts a variety of swim clinics and training camps. I signed up for all six races, Jacky opted for the three Challenge swims. BEST Centre also organise an Olympic triathlon the day before the Fest, so we signed up for that as well!

Another day, another dollar!

We flew out on Wednesday, oriented ourselves on Thursday and picked up hire bikes from Team Double J. Friday, we recced the bike course and tested the water. It was wonderful but at 20 degrees still on the chilly side, so wetsuits would be needed for the events. Saturday, we toed the line at the triathlon, but that’s another story.

Sunday, Day 1 - Colonia Classic 1. A 5 km point-to-point race. This required an early bus from HQ to the Sa Rapita beach. I was a bit anxious about what lay ahead but the young team from Napoli’s Posillipo Nautical Club were on the bus which created in a rather ‘lively and distracting’ atmosphere - LOL! It was initially overcast but the predicted good weather soon arrived and indeed, conditions all week were great: clear skies, mid/high-twenties, calm – at least in the mornings. Final check-in was on the beach and the atmosphere was quite relaxed as everybody got on with their final prep - sunscreen and body glide being liberally applied. 

After a short briefing, 261 swimmers entered the water: 170 in skins, 91 in wetsuits. 127 women and 134 men, including 8 ‘elites’, 5 ‘elite’-juniors, 7 ‘non-elite’ juniors and plenty of age groupers, including 69 in my 50-59 age group. We finally set off at 9:38 am and next thing you know, it’s over. 1 hr 37 minutes later I emerged on the beach back at Sant Jordi, 144^th overall, 30^th in the wetsuit division. There are some very talented swimmers present. The first male got out in under an hour, the first woman – an ‘elite’ junior – in just under 1:04. But there is a big range; for example, 34 swimmers arrived between 2 and 2.5 hrs. And indeed, the whole event felt very inclusive. The atmosphere on the beech before each event was very civilised, as were the swim starts, and after there was a lot of fun, with post-swim energy, refreshments, medals, music and the daily raffle. Our hotel was right on this bay, so it was a short walk home for lunch and some sleep.

Day 2, the Corberana Challenge sponsored by 220 Triathlon magazine, so you had a choice of 1.9 or 3.8 km, reflecting the half and full ironman distances. So it was 4 laps for Jacky and 2 for me, in a beautiful small bay off the small beach at Cala Galiota. The routine is now becoming clear; breakfast, walk to beach, register, get prepped, short briefing, cross timing mats to check all swimmers into the water, line up, hooter, swim. On exit, your timing chip and a manual register check to ensure that all the swimmers are back on dry land. It was all incredibly well organised and felt very safe. The kayak safety team were excellent! Jacky had a great swim and enjoyed her longest sea swim to date. The ‘elites’ skipped this one but there are still some cracking times, with Paul Newsome – Mr Swim Smooth – emerging first in the 3.8k race in 54 minutes, and the British Army Team came away with a big haul of medals.

Day 3, Colonia Classic 2, a 1500m race, a deep-water start at 10:30 am from the Es Dolc beach and finishing in the adjacent Port beach. The elites were back, but not just the Italians, the Germans had arrived! The number of full-length Arena Powerskins on display skyrocketed. I ramped up my anxiety a notch, agonising over whether to ditch the wetsuit. Temperatures were rising, the water was very calm, so I finally decided to go for it and donned my Huub swim skin. It was quite liberating, and the wetsuit never reappeared. 247 finishers in the skins division, with the top 30 dominated by the elites and juniors, times ranged from 16 to 19 minutes. The first ‘oldie’ was Paul Newsome (40-49) in 36^th with a 19:14. I emerged after 27:46, 162^nd, a bit faster compared to Saturday’s triathlon which was in the same bay but not quite the same course. Again, the post-race atmosphere was a lot of fun, with food, medals and raffle prizes

But the day wasn’t over. At 3 pm we were back for the Tell Me Your Time Challenge swim. At check-in you provided a predicted time for the 2.5k course, which was a variation of the one used in the morning. No timing devices were allowed, and the winner is the person who emerges closest to their predicted time. But there were two twists: the course was definitely long, more like 3k, and the afternoon wind had picked up considerably, so it was very choppy, making it a hard swim for both of us. We came in on 1:01 and 1:09, 13 minutes off our predicted times. The winner finished in 1:02:48, 13 seconds off their predicted time. Only 137 in total took part, with the elites back in the pool, but the post-race atmosphere was still buzzing.

There were several side events and after the Tell Me Your Time we attend a fascinating talk by champion free diver Miguel Lozano. The next day, we attended a talk hosted by Paul Newsome on ‘How to prepare for a 10k race’, with expert input from elite marathon swimmers Alex and Beatrix Studzinski. For this BEST Fest, Paul was accompanied by an army of Swim Smooth coaches who hosted on a range of pool-based and open water skills sessions, including 1-2-1 video analysis. It’s a shame we couldn’t take advantage of this, but our week was already pretty packed!

Day 4, Wednesday, it’s the next Challenge swim, the Es Carbo Italian Volcano, another point-to-point, this time from the Es Carbo beach back to the Port beach. After check-in, it’s a bit of a hike to the start but it’s worth it because the swim back meanders along the coast through some beautiful waters – lots of fish and I saw a cool octopus! Just as I was about to turn into the finishing straight, I saw Jacky and she proceeds to beat me out on of the water. ‘Either she’s had a great swim, or I’ve had a bit of a shocker’. It was of course a bit of both, Jacky did have a great swim, with this being her favourite event. But the week was catching up with me and I felt pretty tired. But it was all good, back to the beach to enjoy the festival atmosphere, this time with large paellas on offer.

Day 5, Colonia Classic 3, a choice of either 10k or 7k, 6 loops or 4, in the bay we finished in on day 1. I was never going to do the 10k, and even if I started the 7k, I was thinking maybe just 2 laps then call it a day. However, I was really tanked. 16k swimming in 5 days was a lot for me. Also, despite planning on taking the triathlon easy, I had smashed it (it was great fun and worth it but … …!). The 5k on day 1 was a big deal, plus agonising about ditching the wetsuit on day 3, meant I had probably expended quite a bit of emotional energy. Three back-to-back skin swims in cool water probably also took more out of me than I realised. Plus, I’m, no spring chicken anymore. So I bailed. We did of course go along to watch, and the atmosphere was great. A lot of emotion at the finish arch; some swimmers very hyped, others tearful. Great comradery amongst the various teams, especially the young Italians and Germans. That afternoon we headed over to the BEST Centre for a chilled-out pool swim.

And finally, Day 6, the 4x 500 relays. We had planned to do two legs each, alternating. But the weather had turned; it was grey, windy and choppy, so we didn’t fancy it. But again, spectating was fun. The team comradery we saw yesterday amongst the youngsters went into hyperdrive and was quite inspiring. And again, that afternoon we took advantage of the pool time available to BEST Fest entrants.

Would we do it again? Yes! Neither of us are fishes, so the festival pushed us both well out of our comfort zones, but we really enjoyed it. I would certainly do a few things differently next time to try to complete all 7 events. It was the right decision to bail on the last two, but while spectating I definitely had a case of FOMO. I’d love to take on the 10k. Next year’s dates have been announced: 24-30 May 2025 with registrations likely to open in November.

What happened to the rest of 2023?

After my 2023 A-race ended in disaster, I still had a large deposit in the Bank of Fitness and I wanted to spend it. I considered a late-season middle-distance race, but didn’t really fancy anything.

So I decided to focus on local short-distance races and over the next seven weeks I absolutely caned it around South Manchester and Cheshire. 

I raced at my absolute max 14 times in total, including five hill climbs, three 10 mile time trials, four 5k races, one Olympic triathlon and an aquathlon.

It was great fun and intense, at one point I think I raced four times in five days.

The highlight was the Deva Olympic where I came 11^th overall, 1^st in the M50-54 age group in a time of 2:14:04, some 2.5 minutes ahead of the next guy. 

An 18:19 5k Sale Sizzler wasn’t too shabby either, and a 23:39 10m TT was only 8 seconds off my all-time best. Flying around Sale Waterpark at 3:53 mins/k pace in the aquathlon was a personal highlight.

While I continued with easy training in between events, I was cashing cheques like crazy and not making new deposits, so my balance in the Bank of Fitness was eroding fast. And then just like that, I’d had enough and not interested in another race. It’s amazing how your body tells you what to do.

A week later my off season started with a couple of trips and holiday. After a relaxing summer I tried to kick off winter training at the start of September but in anticipation of going under the knife I never really got into any kind of rhythm. 

In the end, my op wasn’t scheduled until 16^th December and while my aim was to retain as much fitness as possible before an enforced rest/recovery period, my mojo went AWOL and so my fitness continued to decay, reaching its lowest point in many years. 

But by January 1^st, my two-week recovery was over, my mojo was back and so I began rebuilding for  2024. 

14 all-out short-course races in 7 weeks

Deva swim exit

Deva Olympic bike

Deva Olympic run

I built up a great fitness reserve training for Outlaw Half Nottingham which I then put to good use with 14 all-out races in 7 weeks. However, cashing cheques while not making deposits into the fitness bank can only go on for so long.

 

Outlaw Half Nottingham 2023

My sixth race here ended with a bang, quite literally! 37 km into the bike leg, on the fast descent into Southwell, I was flying at 58 kph when all hell broke loose.

A perfect day for racing

As I hit an unseen pothole, a tyre exploded, bottles went flying, spokes twanged and there was the horrible sound of carbon rim running along tarmac. By the grace of god I controlled the bike and came to a halt.

The front tyre was kaput. ACTION STATIONS. Grabbed my flat kit, inverted the bike, hex key to unscrew the aero skewer, wheel off and ripped away the flat tub. Unfolded the pre-stretched spare, removed the valve core, and screwed in the appropriate extender.

Tub fitted around the rim, partially inflated with bit of CO₂, seated the tyre, then more CO₂ to full pressure. Wheel back on, skewer in, job done. Less than six minutes. SIX minutes! SIX! I can’t change an inner tube that fast! Can you? The old boys were right: changing a tub is faster that installing a new inner tube.

Southwell

I righted my bike but when the rubber hit the tarmac there was a horrible clunk and that’s when I realised that the rear had also blown out! I was so focused on fixing the front I hadn't noticed.

During the tyre change, a support van stopped to see if I was ok. I said all good thanks, asked him to dispose of the old tub and he went on his way.

When I realised the rear was bust, I chased after him waving frantically for attention - I only carried one spare so without him I was stranded. Nobody carries two, right?

Turns out, he had already pulled over again about 50 meters back up the road; another racer had suffered the same fate as me.

No pictures of me so here's Jacky exiting the swim ...

To my surprise, the mechanic had a spare tub. So I re-flipped the bike and ripped the dead Vittoria off the back wheel. However, the spare was brand new, unstretched, unprepped. I wrestled for a bit but no way it was going on.

And that was it: a moment of calm washed over me - lights out, game over. No tantrum, no tears, just an instant evaporation of all ambition. I was well prepared to fix one puncture, but not two.

Meanwhile, a crowd was gathering on the corner of the Oxten and Allenby Roads as rider after rider hit the same pothole. Now there were three other triathletes frantically wrestling with tyre levers and inner tubes, plus the mechanic, the van driver, a passer-by and his dog.

... on the bike ...

I walked up the road to retrieve my bottles and inspect the hole. Found one bottle but the XLab Aero was nowhere to be seen, likely catapulted into someone’s front garden. 

The hole was a foot long, 6-8 inches wide and an inch deep, with sharp edges. It was in the middle of the road so on a normal line you’d easily miss it. But the parked cars forced riders closer to the white line. It was scary watching others whizz by, missing it either side by mere inches. 

I wandered back to the crowd, hoping for a ride back in the van. That’s when I realised I had been very fortunate. ‘Mike’ hit the hole, another double blow out. He scrubbed some speed but as the road curved left he came off, a few meters short of where I had stopped.

... at the finish ...

People, including ‘Ashley’, rushed to his aid. I went back up the road, waving my arms and shouting ‘slow down’. A policeman arrived and took over, better equipped with a flag and whistle. Mike, lying half in, half out of the road waited for an ambulance. Collar bone, ribs and shoulder banged up. Blood from somewhere.

Mike's FB post. 

A sag wagon arrived, three bikes went in the back, and I hopped in, joining an injured woman from Knutsford Tri. On the other side of Thurgarton, we spotted two riders in the verge. Another pothole victim had gone over his handlebars. He joined us in the van.

As alluded, in the heat of the moment I took it well – c'est la vie. However, in the cold light of day, yep, I’m willing to admit that I’m pretty disappointed.

This was my A-race for 2023. With nothing else in the calendar, all my attention since last Autumn was on this race, and my ambition was an age-group podium. Training had gone well, I was in great shape and up for it. And a podium spot was there for the taking: the top three finished in 4:33, 4:43 and 4:49, within reach. So yeah, gutted.

I've had good days and bad days at this race!

It wasn’t all bad; after a quick shower I spent the rest of the day cheering on club mates and in particular supporting Jacky as she completed her first ever middle-distance triathlon, what a superstar, smiles all the way. I'm supa-proud.

All done, bravo!

For me, it’s back to the drawing board but meanwhile, a few additional vignettes:

Senior moment no. 1. I was a Green cap, due to go off at 6 am, after the Orange and Blue waves at 5:50, and after the Yellows and Reds at 5:55. Just after the first waves started, Emily pointed out that the Yellows were now on the start pontoon. I freaked out.

For open water training, I always wear a yellow cap, and in anticipation of cold water, I first put on my own yellow cap, then my official Green race cap. Both were now on my head and out of sight. In the moment, my yellow-cap-imprinted brain went “Shit, I’ve missed my wave!” So I pushed my way through the crowd, ran to catch up with the Yellows on the pontoon and jumped in. Phew, made it in time!

It wasn’t until after the race that Jacky pointed out she had seen me, a single Green setting off among the mass of Yellows. Who knows what people around me were thinking as I charged through. How embarrassing!

Senior moment no. 2. As I charged through T1, I was looking out for landmarks near my bike. But the numbers didn’t make sense, I’d overshot. So I ran back 10, 20 meters. But this didn’t make sense either, the landmarks were all wrong. So I turned around again. Then I remembered, I was 489 not 589, Doh! What a klutz. Despite a few needless circles, I still ripped through in a respectable 3:51.

Tubs vs clincher vs tubeless. Since 2013, I’ve been racing on awesome Fast Forward carbon tubulars; a deep section F9R on the front and a disc on the rear, loaded up with Vittoria Corsa Speed G2.0 tubs, which consistently test amongst the fastest tyres out there.

My Fast Forwards earlier this month at the Dukinfield 50m TT.
Still going strong after 10 years, until this race!

When I bought them, the tubs versus clinchers debate was in full flow. The crux was a question of performance versus convenience. Tubs are faster but also a PITA; they need to be pre-stretched and glued, and what do you do if you puncture? However, if you were prepared to learn your craft, then tubs were the choice for maximum performance. And as I learnt in this race, I was well prepared to deal with one puncture, just not two.

Clincher vs tubular vs tubeless 

Indeed, my race wheels have served me well; some great performances and no punctures in 10 years, until this weekend. The only other time I've punctured in a race was at the 2011 New Forest Standard. Meanwhile, clinchers have closed the performance gap, but both are now being surpassed by tubeless. So maybe it’s time to bite the bullet and upgrade to tubeless. So that’s new wheels then. But how easy is it to get tubeless rim brake wheels? Or will I have to switch to disc brakes? Oh well, guess I need a new bike then! See, there is a silver lining.