Good swim, was really pleased with it. Goal time was 35 mins and managed 34 without going absolutely flat out. Struggled a bit with sighting - it was hard to see the buoys through the crowd and there weren't really any landmarks to aim for. Managed a pretty straight line though and as the field thinned out around the course it got easier to spot the buoys.

Anti-fog spray for the goggles, plus ideally I wouldn't have worn my tinted goggles but the clear ones broke two days before and I didn't want to race in brand new ones.

Pretty good T1. 65th overall, 7th in age group.

Worked hard on the bike course. Had a stupid crash on the 1st lap just after the second feed station but luckily didn't break anything on me or the bike. Also lost my cycle computer halfway through the first lap, that'll teach me to attach it to the stem with sellotape. Started to fade in the last 5 - 10 miles but very pleased with my time overall, wasn't expecting to get under 3:30 on this course.

Not crash! Find a better way of attaching my cycle computer. Eat a *lot* more. Not carry redundant drinks on the bike, pick it up from the feed stations and save the weight.

Had a pretty slow T2 but wasn't too worried about it. 59th in age group and 440th overall. Forgot to put my socks on before my trainers (used to racing without socks but decided I needed them for this distance) so had to take the trainers off again.

Be a little more organised but in retrospect the slow T2 probably didn't really harm me all that much.

First two miles were very hard. Hadn't taken in enough food or drink on the bike and I was running out of glycogen. After struggling to the first two feed stations and taking on some gels and drink I started to pick up. Miles 3 - 10 were pretty good, probably averaged just under 7:30 min/mile. Started to lose it over the last 3 miles though and had to walk the uphill sections. Happy with the time though considering how much walking I did. Twice up the hill was walking, only managed to run it on the second lap.

Take in a lot more gels on the bike. I need to find a better way of storing them on the bike. Do some more hill training.

Lack of energy towards the end of the bike and over the run. Needed to take on a lot more calories during the bike.


Really tough course but very enjoyable. I would definitely do it again, although next time I'd do more hill training and take on a lot more calories!