A Social Triathlon in Memory of John

I haven’t done a triathlon since 2016 and haven’t done any multi-sport events at all since my heart attack. In fact, I had kind of given up on the idea. I simply would never be as competitive as I was before and I’m not sure that pushing hard in a race would be a good idea from a health point of view. However, when I saw that some friends in the Cerist Triathlon Club were organising a ‘Social Triathlon’ in memory of John, who passed away earlier this year after a fight with cancer, I couldn’t really resist.

The idea was that we’d all come together, have a swim in the lake at Tal y Llyn, go for a bike ride and then go for a run. I wasn’t sure how ‘social’ it would actually be as no doubt some people would be out for at least a good day’s training if not a bit of friendly competition. The option to make it social was of course there for those who fancied a fun day out with some friends. I was somewhere in the middle. It certainly wasn’t a race for me but I would hope to swim, bike and run at a steady pace rather than a slow pace along with some others of similar ability.

Tal y Llyn

So, the scene was set and once again I packed my bag with triathlon kit and loaded the bike onto the van. There were a few additions to my usual triathlon kit in the form of GTN spray, aspirin and a defibrillator in the back of the van. Anna was coming along too for support and probably to make sure I wasn’t putting in too much effort!

On arrival the lake was looking gorgeous, not a breath of wind to trouble its surface and the car park was already busy.

Having not been racing or training since my heart attack and previous to that due to the Coronavirus pandemic I hadn’t seen anyone from Cerist for years. There was a lot of catching up to do and everyone wanted to know how I was. I actually look OK these days. If you didn’t know me you certainly wouldn’t know that I was still recovering from a heart attack. I don’t feel too bad most of the time either so I imagine from my general appearance and demeanour it was difficult for most people to know what I’d been through. That was fine, although I did want to temper people’s expectations somewhat as they were all used to me being fairly fast – that’s not the case anymore!

All the old faces were there so it was good to catch up with everyone. Andrea and Frank were there with Frank recalling tales from our trip to Austria, Kevin was giving it a go and was in a similar boat to me having not done an event for 4 years and was recovering from serious illness and injury. Owain and Bedwyr were there and were as usual helping with the organisation so weren’t sure if they would need to act as back markers on the bike. In fact, most of the old faces were there and everyone was looking forward to the day.

After signing on and making a donation to the Bronglais Chemotherapy Unit and Lymphoma Research Trust, where any money raised from the event would be, it was time to don my wetsuit and get ready to go.

Ready to Go

The format for the day was very relaxed. The swim was one or two (it was up to you how many) laps around a triangle of buoys to give a distance of around 400m or 800m for the swim. The bike course was out and back either to Dolgoch or Bryncrug (12 or 25 km) and the run was an out and back along the far side of the lake (2.5km or 5km). Of course, if you wanted to do all three you could, if you just wanted to do one or two that was fine and if you wanted to just turn around wherever you fancied on the course that would be OK too. It was a great way for those new to triathlon to give it a go. It was also a great opportunity for someone a little more experienced but recovering from a heart attack to see how he felt doing such things again. There was no pressure, no pre-race nerves and I could just do whatever I wanted at whatever pace felt comfortable.

The Swim

The lake was quite a bit colder than I was expecting! It wasn’t too bad but an extra hat might have been nice. I did a little swim to the first buoy and back to get acclimatised and then once we were all assembled there was a very informal ‘start’. In essence we just all began swimming around the lake!

I let a few people go off ahead of me, had a chat with Kevin and then set off. I set off taking it really easy. I need to warm up well these days to get my heart ready for action so the swim was nothing more than a warm-up and a very easy one at that. It did feel lovely gliding along through the calm waters with no effort at all. I soon found myself catching the front of the pack up though where Steve was leading the way. I glided past him and was now out in front with perfectly clear water ahead of me.

I completed the first lap. I stopped for a quick look behind me as it felt a bit weird being out in front and leaving people behind if this was a ‘social’ event. It’s hard to be social whilst swimming though and everyone else had their heads down and were going for it so I decided to head out onto a second lap. I did stop again just before the first buoy where I caught a backmarker up. Again it didn’t seem right to just speed past her so I stopped for a quick chat, made sure she was OK and then continued on.

I completed the second lap and clambered out onto the slipway. Others who had only done a single lap were getting out too. My watch seems to have rounded off the corners somewhat and underestimated the distance but you get the gist of the course from the Strava recording.

The Bike

The transition was a relaxed affair. No jumping on to my bike in a wet tri-suit and speeding off whilst putting my shoes on. Instead, I decided beforehand that I would get changed properly and head off with a group of others. So, I had a chance to put on proper cycling kit, put on socks and even have a chat with others before heading off.

Some others were taking it a little more seriously though. Steve who I had overtaken in the swim had already headed out and a few other people were already out cycling. Once I was changed and ready to go there didn’t seem to be anyone to head off within a group so I decided to head out onto the road and see who I could find.

I felt good on the bike. Again I wasn’t pushing hard but soon overtook a few people and even caught Kevin up who must have done less chatting in transition!. No groups formed though so I ended up cycling along at a steady pace on my own. By the turnaround point at Bryncrug it was only Steve ahead of me and he wasn’t that far ahead.

I continued at my steady pace, settling into my aero bars and having a nice ride back. I was waving and saying hello to those still heading out. Most people seemed to be cycling along on their own or in pairs. After Dolgoch I started overtaking a few people who were doing the shorter ride. I arrived back at the lakeside feeling good having done a fairly decent ride.

The Run

Again, the transition was a relaxed affair. There was time to chat, tell people about the ride and get changed into proper running kit. It was then off for an undulating run along the far side of the lake. There were a few gates to open and close and I felt quite slow. I’m usually pretty good at running off the bike but today things felt sluggish. I didn’t want to push it though so just kept the effort easy. I did eventually ease into it and by the time I was heading back felt a little more fluid. The mile splits highlight this, all were slow but they did improve and get slightly less slow throughout the run.

• Mile 1: 8:45
• Mile 2: 8:02
• Mile 3: 7:33

And that was that I’d completed a triathlon. It had been a very relaxed, easy triathlon but I’d done it, I hadn’t so far needed emergency care and I don’t think I’d embarrassed myself either. It did confirm that I’m unlikely to be competitive again but I was far from being the slowest as well so that was all good. My chest was a little uncomfortable later that evening but as I write this the following morning I’m not even a little bit sore and I can walk normally! It was good fun too, so maybe it is possible for me to do such things without worrying too much about my times!

Lunch

After another dip in the lake to wash off what little sweat I’d produced it was time to get changed, get warmed up and head in for lunch at the Tyn y Cornel Hotel. This proved to be more of an ordeal than the triathlon with a queue that could have been an extra discipline in itself. I wish I’d started my watch beforehand so as to record it as a Strava activity. We did eventually make it to the front of the queue and got our pulled pork baps and sat in the cold air eating them. There was then time for some goodbyes before we headed home.

It was a good day out and a fitting tribute to John who would have loved to see so many people giving triathlon a go, especially those first-timers. The relaxed, social aspect of it was just what John enjoyed most whilst allowing those who wanted to put in some effort to do so. A big thanks to the usual suspects for organising it (Gary, Owain, Bedwyr, Arwel, Andrew and anyone else involved). It was perfect.

Tags: Triathlon