Llyn Padarn Time Trial – Nov 2019
After a day in the hills I had expected to sleep well in the camper, but despite all the walking, a nice big dinner and hot chocolate in the camper I didn’t sleep a wink.
I chilled in bed in the morning though and then got up and had a chat with the girl in Snowdonia Watersports – a chat about public toilets no less! It was then back to the car park to get ready for todays’s Time Trial. Conditions looked good with barely any wind and calm waters.
Some people had already been in for a swim and were just getting out to get warmed up. I wished I’d brought my swimming kit along as I could have had a swim with them before doing the time trial. I’ll remember next time!
There weren’t many of us racing today, just 5 of us as we headed across the lake to the start. I was seeded as the fastest paddler once again so was due to start last, 5½ minutes behind Penny who started first and 1:30 behind James who set off before me. There was a little more wind on this side of the lake so we would have a headwind to contend with on the way down the lake but should have a tailwind to blow us home. I was interested to see how my new boat compared to my previous one.
There was little drama during the race, I did hit a rock at one point but nothing too bad. I caught and overtook James on the way back and never really noticed the tailwind. I closed in on the others as well, but never quite caught them and finished with a time of 28:28. That’s about 45 seconds slower than last time in my other boat. 45 seconds is quite a big difference, but not one that couldn’t be attributed to a poor performance on the day, differing weather conditions etc. I guess it’s in the same ballpark so the new boat may be slightly slower (as expected), but hopefully not my too much and I think in rough conditions it may actually prove to be quicker.
With the Time Trial done, James headed off to re-position a buoy that had drifted a little so I went with him and then we headed back to get changed and chat over coffee and cake. I then had a 2 hour drive home through the picturesque autumnal roads of North Wales. Time at last for some rest and recuperation.
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[…] my busy weekend with a surf ski paddle, a jaunt up Cadair Idris, a night in the camper and a kayak Time Trial my legs were feeling a little sore. A perfect opportunity in my eyes to climb another mountain to […]