Swim 750m
Cycle 24km
Run 5km
Yesterday i competed at the Scottish Sprint championships at Lochore meadows. It was an incredible experience and race and i learned some valuable lessons. There were around 400 competitors so i arrived early as to claim my spot in transition and have a good warm up, fortunately again my parents drove me to the race however this meant leaving the house at 6am as the race began at 9:10.
The swim was a mass start on the beach, the water was 14 degrees in an open loch so rather warm and comfortable to swim in. From the start the swim was chaotic, there were so many people and hands and feet everywhere, i was kicked, hit, swam on top of etc. This is just the hidden parts of open water swimming. However i soon managed to set a rhythm to the first buoy, things again were chaotic there with everyone bunching up and some swimming in front instead of behind. After the buoy my ankle was pulled and this messed up my rhythm however i again stuck in and swam hard for the beach. I was late out the water so i knew i had some time to make up on the bike.
Once out the water my wetsuit came off very quick and i was into my cycling shoes and off on the bike. The course was 24km and relatively flat with around 5 climbs. I began the cycle strong and knew i could push hard, the ladies wave started before the mens and it meant there were always targets of people to aim for and to overtake this meant i pushed harder. Unfortunately around the 15km i was cycling through a town when a car pulled in front of myself and two other riders, the car slowed us all down as it was going a lot slower than us. This was extremely frustrating and all 3 of us cyclists were evidently pissed. However on a steep downhill i took a risk and overtook. On the climbs i stayed in my seat but dug deep and came in from the bike feeling strong for the run.
After T2 i was out onto the flat run course that hugs the loch. The run felt quite difficult it was very hot and i pushed hard to overtake as many people as i could. For most of the run i was running side by side with another athlete, i made it my aim to finish ahead of him and so pushed the pace.
Crossing the line i felt i raced a strong race and was rather pleased. I raced as hard as i could and after a not so great swim i made up a lot of time.
Unfortunately i soon realised i was given a two minute time penalty. As it was the Scottish champs the rules were very strict and race referees watching closely. Just before i racked my bike in T2 i unclipped my helmet. I do not remember doing this but under the pressure and adrenaline of the race simple mistakes are made. I was extremely frustrated 2 minutes is a long time and i worked very hard in the race. However rules are rules and i won't let it ruin the day.
I believe i was around the 20th senior to finish before the time penalty and also top 50 out of 353.
I was extremely pleased with how i raced and it was a true experience to be there. I'm annoyed i made a mistake but these things happen and for me this year is about learning.
It meant a lot to again have my good friend Catriona there to watch and also my parents.
Thank you for reading and i will be posting soon about what is coming next.
Pictures thanks to my Dad.
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