Warwickshire Sprint Triathlon, 4 Oct 2020
Warwickshire Sprint Triathlon, organised by UK Triathlon and taking place at Stratford Leisure Centre, was going to be my final triathlon of the (very short) season. However, the day before the race I was doubtful it would even be going ahead!
As the race was taking place just down the road, we had the opportunity to go and register the day before to enable us to get our numbers and reduce the stress on race morning. However, on the way there as we drove along sections of the bike route the impact Storm Alex was having on the area became apparent - flooded roads, debris everywhere.... not really ideal conditions for a triathlon! We registered regardless, and that evening I kept checking my emails and on social media expecting to see 'Race Cancelled' - but to my surprise it never appeared.
Not only was it peeing it down, but it was also freezing at 8 in the morning whilst I was racking up. I suffer from mild Reynaud's, so took the decision to put a jacket and gloves (inside a plastic bag) in transition to put on for the bike - I was hoping the jacket would prevent a bit of wind chill and the gloves would keep my hands warm enough so I could actually undo my helmet.
Having successfully set up my transition area to prevent as much of my kit getting soaked as I could, I then realised I had forgotten a crucial item - my Garmin mount!! I had left it on my road bike, having used it with clip on TT bars, and so I had no way to attach my Garmin to my TT bike.... nightmare. Nothing I could about it, with only 15 mins until I was swimming, so had to bite the bullet and accept I would be riding blind - no data, no concept of speed or power! Tim my coach reassured me by saying it could be a blessing in disguise as the key focus should be staying upright in such wet slippery conditions and not be influenced by target power and speed chasing - very true!
Pre-race and I didn't want to leave the warmth of my dry robe!
SWIM
For me, this swim was going to be a real indication of how well my elbow has healed and strengthened since my accident at the beginning of the year, as I knew my time from last years race (at my peak swim fitness) and so could easily compare. Fortunately, with the Covid measures it meant we were set off at bigger intervals than normal (30 seconds) so there was only about 2 people per lane and so I had a fairly decent run, only having to overtake one lady. Only silly error was mishearing the starter say 'Go' so probably cost me about 5 seconds - oops! To my surprise I got the EXACT same time as last year! Wonky elbow is back fighting fit!
T1/BIKE
Turns out, putting on a jacket and gloves onto a wet body takes longer than you think... I think I added an extra minute onto my T1 time costing me two places. Was it worth it - I don't know - for all I know I could have cramped up with the cold had I not worn the jacket and gloves.... might test out not wearing layers at my next race just to see how I get on! I won't know unless I try!
The actual bike leg went OK and despite how soggy it was I still really enjoyed it! I managed to stay upright and navigate my way through the various patches of flooded roads, one of which was almost over my feet! I was however slightly disappointed with my overall time, and it has proved how reliant I am on seeing my power and speed in front of me to push me into the pain zone - I clearly just pootle along without my Garmin!
Back into T2 and I realised my 'waterproof' jacket was completely wet through so thought I best ditch it before the run - a stupid mistake that was as it got stuck over my watch and took ages to get off - doh!
RUN
Once I had finally got my jacket and gloves off I headed out onto the run course to be greeted by mud and more floods to wade through - it also was still chucking it down! The course itself was an out and back (twice), starting off along a grass/mud track and then onto a tarmac path alongside the river. Sinking into the saturated grass made for tough running, and frustratingly, part way through I managed to roll my foot on some uneven ground in the grassy section (the same one I did earlier on in the year) - I felt it twinge but knew I didn't have long left so tried to ignore it and kept pushing on. In addition, for some reason throughout the run I also just couldn't relax and get my breathing under control - rather than nice deep efficient breaths, I felt as though I was using about 10% of my lung capacity with tiny super fast breaths - almost like hyperventilating! Not at all efficient!
So it was no surprise my run time wasn't quite what I had in mind - but all good things to take away and improve upon for next time!
RESULTS
Despite the conditions, it was still a really enjoyable race and I finished 9th overall lady (out of field of over 100), and 2nd in my age group! It was my first 'cold and wet' race, so there are lots of learning points to take away for next time too.
Finally, a big shout out to coach Tim (Catenary Coaching) who has been supporting me all year to help get my bike and run fitness back post injury (I don't think I have ever been as fit!), and also Jade (Aura Triathlon Coaching) who has recently helped me improve my swim fitness in a really short space of time! Thank you!
Helene Wright
