Abs tries Triathlon

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Triathlon

Triathlon is made up of swimming, cycling and running. I had just one day to master the basics, then I was going to enter my first ever event.

My mentor, Christian suggested we start off with a nice dip in an open water lake. It was a balmy 8C in the water and I've never felt so cold in my life. I was visibly shaking!

After about five minutes I adjusted to the temperature and it was actually quite refreshing. But all I could see through my goggles was green algae suspended in the water. Gross!

During our 20 minute session Christian analysed my swimming technique and taught me about drafting. This is when you directly follow another swimmer, right on their toes. Because you're in their slipstream it makes it easier for you to cut through the water.

It's cold in here!

As well as running, swimming and cycling, the fourth discipline is your transition - changing between each event. Getting out of a wetsuit is a lot harder than it looks. However once I'd wriggled free of mine it was on to the hi-tech Triathlon Coaching Centre, to take a closer look at my running, cycling and swimming style.

I was measured up for my road bike and we monitored my pedal efficiency to see where I was wasting energy. After that it was onto the running machine.

Video analysis

Using video analysis we reviewed my running style and found out I was landing heavily on my heels and my strides were too long. It was weird watching myself back in slow motion. I could see really clearly where I was going wrong. I was given some pointers on ways to improve my style. The difference was instantly noticeable.

Finally I plunged into the endless pool - a mini swimming pool, which generates a current for you to swim against. It was a strange sensation to be swimming but not actually moving anywhere.

There were four cameras in the pool watching me. When I watched myself back I looked like a hippo struggling to stay afloat! The team at the fitness centre did their best to try and fix things, but I was genuinely worried my swimming could let me down.

Cold weather

The big day had arrived and so too had the snow. I won't lie to you, part of me wished it had been too dangerous to run the event, but it seems Tri-athletes are a crazy breed and love the idea of competing in freezing conditions early on a Sunday morning! Nutters!

I would be taking part in a Triathlon Sprint, which consists of a 400 m swim, a 15 km bike ride and a 4 km run.

We started off indoors in the swimming pool - thank goodness. Only a complete idiot would swim in a lake at this time of year!

We're off

A whistle blew and we were off. For 16 lengths I drafted the guy in front of me, who did all the hard work whilst I conserved my energy. In fact at the end of the swim I was feeling quite fresh.

After a quick transition out of my wet suit and into my running kit it was onto the bike. This was by far and away the worst part of my whole experience.

An arctic wind was blowing in my face, I couldn't feel my fingers, and I was having real issues with my bike itself. I struggled to use my gears and my chain even came off at one stage. I finished the section but I'd lost about five places in the process.

A hard ride

I needed to put in a good performance in the run. One by one I picked off my fellow competitors, but my legs felt like jelly, especially on the hill climb.

I battled on and took the lead with about 400 meters to go. I was so happy to see the finish line and to cross it in first place in my group was a complete shock.

I ended up finishing 10th out of 26 competitors and my time was one hour and 59 seconds. Not bad for a first timer! The best news of the day though was that I'd actually clocked the fastest time on the running section. I couldn't wipe the smile of my face for the rest of the day!

Thanks very much to everyone at Farnham Triathlon Club for making this such a memorable experience. See you again soon!!