New Forest Middle Distance Triathlon, 29 Aug 2021

On Sunday I raced the New Forest Middle Distance (70.3) Triathlon set in the stunning New Forest National Park. It was an early start, but the weather was mild and it was a sunny morning which made for perfect race conditions. The swim took place in Ellingham lake and consisted of one big lap of the lake followed by a slightly smaller loop back to the shore. I set off feeling strong in the water, but I felt my pace drop a bit as I struggled to sight the middle buoy swimming into direct sunlight on the second lap. After a solid swim it was a quick dry of the feet and change into my running shoes to make my way 1.2 km down the road to transition at Moyles Court School.

The bike course was a rolling hills route and it was gorgeous! It was a nice surprise to be riding alongside free roaming wild ponies, donkeys and horses - although this did mean a fair amount of donkey dodging! I was pleased with the bike leg – I handled my nutrition well and felt pretty happy cruising. I pushed hard enough, without overdoing it so that I could save my legs for the run.

The run was two laps of a course which passed out of transition, climbed up and down a hill and then back the same country road into transition. On the out and back section of the course I passed my friends, who were also racing, on several occasions and we could cheer each other on along the way (shout out to Ellie, Jonny, Tim, Justin, Xav and Paul!). I was very happy with my performance on the run. My legs felt fresh and I was able to hold a good pace. The second hill climb was a struggle and the second lap undoubtedly harder than the first. However, knowing that I was close to the finish kept me going.

I completed the race in 5 h 12 min. 1st in my age group, 5th female and 14th overall! All the hard work and training leading up to my big race of the year paid off – thank you coach Tim for helping me achieve this.

Jenny Carter