The Toughest Middle Distance Race in the UK

What I mean, of course, is the toughest Middle Distance race in the UK that I have completed in 2008.

So, in reverse order:

5th Place - Cowman. It was very close between Cowman and the Vitruvian for 5th place, but the additional pressure I placed on myself to do well at the Vitruvian just edged that race ahead of the Cowman. Don't get me wrong, the Cowman is a good event and had an excellent goody bag (2XU calf guards were included) and it is a proper HIM distance race as well. But other than one serious hill on the bike (that you do 3 times), it is the distance rather than the course that presents the challenge. The weather was pretty grim, though, which didn't help.

Toughness Factor - 6 (out of 10). Enjoyment Factor 8

4th Place - Vitruvian. Sorry Pacesetter Events, you put on a great event but tough? Not even close. The Rutland Ripple on the bike leg (that you do twice) is over with very quickly; indeed I find the long drag and the "lumps" towards the end of the lap more challenging. The back part of the bike course is also very fast, especially this year with a fair tailwind pushing you along. I got my first sub 5 hour Middle Distance race this year, hence the high Enjoyment Factor rating.

Toughness Factor - 6. Enjoyment Factor - 10

3rd Place - Aberfeldy. The first 3 were by some margin tougher than the other 2, but were very closely matched between themselves, as the challenges each of them offered was different. It was tough to split the first 3 but after much deliberation 3rd place goes to Aberfeldy. The swim was cold this year, certainly colder than I remember it from previous races, but was OK once you got going. The bike leg is tough and I recorded my slowest bike split of the year at just over 3 hours for 92km; the first hill is some 8km long! The run was undulating and although I felt good I overcooked it on the run, making it a very tough end to the race for me. But that was my fault, not the course's, hence 3rd place.

Toughness Factor - 8. Enjoyment Factor - 10

2nd Place - Bala. At 2km, the swim is (officially) longer than the other races and the weather had been kind in the lead up to the race so the water wasn't that cold. The bike leg is only 80km but man, what an 80km they are. Traditionally, the course goes up and over the mountain then has a fast run back alongside Lake Bala to T2. Due to road subsidence the route was changed this year; up and over the mountain until you reached 40km, then turn round and go back the way you came, up and over the mountain again. And it was tough. And if you survived the bike (and many did not) then there was the run. The race organiser described the run as having no flat bits other than the run out of T2. He was quite right! After a few kms the road goes left uphill, and keeps going uphill until the turnaround point, and then it's downhill for a couple of km and the undulating run home. The weather did it's bit to make it tough as well; it was scorchio hot and many competitors were quite badly sunburned during the course of the day. Yes, a tough one, but not the toughest.

Toughness Factor - 9. Enjoyment Factor - 9

1st Place - Half Ireman. So what does a Middle Distance race need to be considered the toughest one I did this year? Firstly, it was full HIM distance. Secondly, it was a sea swim, and a long one at that. Post race analysis showed the fastest swimmer was some 10 minutes slower than the previous year - 1900m? General consensus seemed to be that 2.2km might be a closer estimate. And then there was the temperature - it was cold - and the swell; look up at the wrong time and all you saw was the forthcoming wave about to hit you. And salt water tastes horrible. The bike is also long, at 93km. It is a strange bike leg as there are no long, steep hills. What you do get, though, is constantly changing gradient meaning you are forever changing gear and cadence and it was very difficult to get into a rhythm. There are some very good stretches of tarmac, but there are also some of the worst roads I have ever raced on, and you really do get a bit of a beating. And then there's the run. A course change this year took it up from 20 to 21km for a proper HIM distance and this is no easy tarmac course. You run along a coastal path, single track for some distance, with rocks etc to negotiate, before you get to a couple of sections of beach, complete with soft sand. And you do 2 laps of that. But it's a very well organised event (certainly as good as The Vitruvian) and there were lots of supporters out on the course cheering you on which made it a really enjoyable event to do as well.

Toughness Factor - 10. Enjoyment Factor - 10.

So there you have it, my 5 Toughest UK Middle Distance races for 2008.

So what's on the agenda for 2009? So far, the only things I have agreed to are:

Quelle Challenge Roth - 12 July
Quelle Challenge Barcelona - 4 October

Others I would like to do, subject to work, family etc etc are:

Dubai Half Ironman - late January. I will be in Qatar and will have a solid 4 months of training behind me so why not?
The Wensleydale Big Cheese - early to mid August. Daz says it's a toughie and accuses me of not being tough enough to complete it. Sounds like a challenge to me; difficult not to pick up that particular gauntlet.

I would also like to fit in the IS races, so duathlon, Olympic and middle distance events are on the "possible/maybe" list. And maybe event the RAF sprint series.

Hell's teeth, that's 10 events already, even before I start adding other events like 10, 25 and 50 mile TTs and a couple of cheeky sportives I want to do in prep for Roth and Barcelona.

And let's not forget I will be posted somewhere when I get back from Qatar in February so will have to wait and see where I end up. You never know, I might not be able to do any UK events ...

Now is the time to rest smart folks; take some time off, do something different, recharge the batteries, get some quality coaching in your weakest discipline (one I will be ignoring!), spend some quality time with the family etc etc. If I don't see you before I head east, have a good winter training and I look forward to meeting up with you all again in the New Year. 2008 was great, can 2009 be better?