CowMan - Long Report

CowMan HIM - 6 July 2008

This was Leg 2 of the 2008 UK HIM Tour. Bala was tough due to the heat and the hills. CowMan was tough because of the extra length, the wind and the rain.

Let's get the disappointment over with first - I didn't crack 5 hours. In fact, I wasn't even close. I finished in 5:14:47, but it wasn't all bad news. But we'll come to that later.

The race is based in Emberton Park, near Olney (between Milton Keynes and Bedford); it's a proper HIM distance race with a swim of 1900m, a bike of 94km and a 21km run. The swim is in a lake and is over 2 laps; I thought the water was quite dirty and the banks rivalled Rutland Water for the quantity of duck/swan/goose poo! It was an early start too; first wave was due off at 0700 with my wave (male vets and juniors) at 0705 and the last wave (ladies and teams) at 0710. Consequently, I was up at 0420 to get there in good time. The weather forecast was grim: rain, maybe thunderstorms, and high winds. Oh deep joy!

After parking and registering you had to queue to get your cycle helmet checked, goody bag (including 2XU compression calf things, nice) and your race chip. It was raining and the queues were getting longer by the minute and there were a few grumbles as race start approached. Nevertheless, I was racked and ready in good time and made the short walk to the race start feeling good.

The race began a few minutes late and as usual I found some space towards the back of the pack and quickly got into a nice rhythm. The first buoy was only a couple of hundred metres away and the pack hadn't really had a chance to spread out so it was a bit chaotic but I got round without incident. My goggles then started to steam up which caused me to head off course a bit but they cleared after a few hundred metres of meandering and all was well after that. I exited the swim in 36.48 and was happy with that considering the additional distance I had completed.

T1 was a long drawn out affair (as in 3.46 long drawn out!) as I dressed for the elements. My RAF Triathlon cycling top got its first race outing and I also put on neoprene overboots and winter gloves with full fingers - there was no way I was running a half marathon still wearing my helmet! Onto the bike and I overtook about 10 people down the narrow track to the road - what were these people doing? Out onto the road and it was hammer time. The course is undulating with a couple of hills but I stayed in the big ring and honked up these. I felt good and was drinking and eating - maybe the colder weather was suiting me? I got round the first 36km lap in just over an hour, but payback wasn't far away. The hills that I had bullied my way up on lap 1 were now biting back and I found myself spending more time in the little ring. Indeed, there is a fairly tough hill at the end of the lap and I was certainly struggling second time around. The 3rd lap is shorter, at about 22km long, and by this point I seemed to have lost all power, and I was mighty relieved to get to T2. 2.48.39 for the 94km so a tad over 33.6kmh - I was a bit disappointed with this but considering the windy conditions I guess it was OK.

I had a pretty good T2 (1.31) and I was feeling OK, not great, but OK. My legs were certainly feeling the effects of the bike but they were carrying me along at a reasonable pace (note this is measured against my own pathetic run standards and not against the likes of Daz Sharpe!). The run is a 4-lap affair, taking you through the village of Emberton onto a lumpy cross country route before returning to the Park and running round the lake. Lap 1 was completed in 27 minutes with over a minute spent by a tree whilst I answered a call of nature. Lap 2 was completed in 25 minutes although I was beginning to struggle. On lap 3 I had a little walk before I had a word with myself although I still managed the lap in 27 minutes. At the beginning of lap 4 I was passed by Wayne O'Brien from the Army whilst I was refuelling at the feed station, I quickly caught him up again but my legs let me down up the hill and he got away again. On the downhill stretch I really pushed myself and caught him up and then made a real effort as I went passed him - there was no way he was going to beat me. That last lap was the fastest one I did, at just under 25 minutes, making a total run time of 1.44.01, just 3 minutes off my HIM run PB. I was really chuffed with that.

So I finished in 5:14:47; I had hoped that this would be the race I went sub 5 hours for the first time, but the extra length on the bike course and the weather conditions put paid to that. I'm not disappointed, I reckon I did the best I could on the day, and that's what counts. OK, maybe I pushed too hard on lap 1 of the bike but unless you do this you will never know what is too hard.

Splits:

Swim T1 Bike T2 Run Total
36.48 3.46 2.48.39 1.31 1.44.01 5.14.47

Position Overall AG
77 out of 324 26

I'm happy, I'm tired, and it's the RAF Sprint Distance Champs on Wednesday. Will my legs recover in time to give some of the quick bys something to think about on the bike? We shall see.

Thanks to everyone who sent me texts both before and after the race, the support from RAF Tri members is very much appreciated.

Next stop on the UK HIM Tour is Aberfeldy in the Highlands of Scotland on 16 August. This is another tough race with a beast of a bike course; I've only gone under 3 hours on the bike once in 3 attempts and my course PB is 5 hours 24 minutes. Reg will be with me on this one and no doubt seeking revenge for his defeat at Bala.