A Day in the Lakes - Race Report.

Not just a great 'Day in the Lakes' but a great weekend in the Lakes as Team ATHelite headed over the border to Pooley Bridge by Ullswater to take on one of the hardest Half Ironman distance Triathlons in the Uk. 1.2 mile open water swim in Ullswater, 56 (actually nearly 58) very hilly miles on the bike including the killer Kirkstone Pass & also over Shap summit then onto the gruesome 13 mile Fell run up over Fusedale & back.

Five ATHeliteers took on the full thing (Colin, Genevieve, Dawn, Graeme & Alan Stirling). C & G did the Day in the Lakes last year & said never again but we found ourselves back & were keen to improve on last years results following all the recent Ironman training.

We also had 3 ATHelite Relay Teams in action as follows (in order of Swim, Bike, Run)...

ATHelite - The A Team; Jack Dickson, Michael Martin, Alan Derrick

ATHelite - The Mystery Machine; Sandy Comrie, James Carrigan, Billy Buchanan

ATHelite - Triathlon Club(!?); Martin Duthie, Mandy, Don.

As we all assembled on the camp site just yards from the start line & transition the mood was slightly tense in places (Dawns place) but the sun was shining and the BBQ was sizzling. One or two glasses of wine were taken but generally quite restrained and we all headed to bed at a good hour.

With the alarms going off at 6.30am some of the lighter sleepers had long been awake due to what sounded like the screams of the lambs as they were released from Alan Derricks tent & the noisy circling Crows & Vultures above. It was looking to be another glorious day. Hello sunburn.

The swim start went off in 2 heats 5 mins apart. The water was a great temperature but was pretty choppy making sighting the infrequent buoys difficult for everyone (except Jack). Coming back in both myself & Genevieve went wildly off line sighting on completely the wrong finish line & had to make major adjustments to get back on course. Not clever. Nonetheless we did take 2 mins off last years time & as with last year exited the water side by side. Awww. Swim times as follows....

Jack...........25.34 (awesome swim & 2nd out of the water!)
Martin........29.12 (Great time)
Dawn.........32.58 (You are wonderful!)
Colin..........33.25 (Average)
Genevieve..33.27 (Above Average)   
Alan...........35.36 (Solid)
Sandy.........36.00 (Smooth)
Graeme......38.36 (Showing good improvements)

Onto the bikes and immediately into quite a strong head wind but nice & warm & sunny. A few miles of easier rolling roads as we counted down to the impending doom of Kirkstone Pass. I was torn between doing this ride on my road bike (easier for the climbs) and my TT bike (better for the flatter sections & for running after). As I approached Kirkstone into the head wind I was immediately concerned that my harder geared TT bike laden with 2.5 litres of fluids was already in it's easiest gear before the climb had started! The climb starts off as a real grind, in & out of the saddle, but I managed to keep targetting people ahead & pick them off. It then really kicks up again to the summit but with my quads screaming I managed to push over the top & stay focussed for the traffic laden descent. Pushing on, the next challenge is the long 10 mile climb up over Shap. A long drag but the back wind at this point was a real asset & it didn't present too many problems. A fantastic sweeping descent off Shap then it's just counting down the miles & keeping the speed going to the transition. Bike times as follows....

Michael.......3.06.13 (not as quick as expected but he was vomiting over his speedo & front wheel. Amateurs!)
Colin...........3.10.36 (Loved it & 6 mins quicker than last year)
Graeme.......3.18.02 (Great ride - did he leave enough in the tank for the run...?)
Genevieve....3.19.45 (20 mins up on last year & SECOND fastest female bike split of the day!!)
Alan S.........3.30.43 (Very good)
James..........3.40.56 (Very respectable)
Dawn..........3.44.21 (You are wonderful)
Mandy........4.18.46 (Mission accomplished!!)

And so the run was upon us - 13 miles up in the fells with a long gravelly climb shortly after transition to make your calves scream in pain followed by 4 slightly more enjoyable miles across trails, boggy grass & streams before climing very steeply (so much so you have to walk) up over Fusedale & down the steep & rocky descent before a never ending 3.5 miles on the road to the finish line. This is a TOUGH run!

Alan D........1.36.03 (a storming run & 7th quickest off the day)
Billy............1.55.11 (Descending like a goat)
Colin...........1.55.46 (very pleased - 12 mins up on last year, felt great & overtook almost 40 people in the last 3.5 miles)
Genevieve...2.19.18 (10 mins quicker than last year despite recent running injury)
Dawn..........2.26.48 (This is just wonderful)
Alan S........2.29.45 (Solid all round)
Don........... 2.29.48 (Who is this amazing athlete?)
Graeme.......2.41.41 (Good run - bring on the Ironman!)

Alot of numbers to take in there but the overall finishing times are as follows...

RELAY TEAMS

The A Team.............5.09.36 and 1ST TEAM!!!! WOOHOO - WELL DONE JACK, MICHAEL & ALAN!!!
Mystery Machine.....6.13.32 (Awesome)
A Tri Club...............7.19.17 (Excellent)

INDIVIDUAL

Colin.......................5.42.49 (20 min PB)
Genevieve...............6.15.49 (4th Lady & 25 min PB)
Graeme..................6.41.51 (All.....
Alan.......................6.43.09 ....so close...
Dawn.....................6.48.46 ....together!!)

Huge well done to everyone - this race is a huge challenge & a serious accomplishment. Thanks to Jean & Michelle for your additional support too. We had a good booze up round the BBQ on Sunday night & a lovely relaxing morning lying in the sun on the campsite before the drive home after lunch. Back to reality tomorrow. From our Ironman training point of view we have shown ourselves that we are right on track & fully recovered today as planned. Rest week this week before the final 4 heavy weeks of training before Copenhagen.

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