Soria, Spain – ITU European duathlon – Part 2

Travel arrangements went smoothly until we arrived at Madrid airport ! Locating the hire car and actually ploughing through the paper work in order to drive it away took an age and added to the anxiety of negotiating the motorway complex that surrrounds the city. I’m used to driving abroad but this was the biscuit. After two stops to redefine our route we went from heading north west back in to Madrid to go north east – our intended route! Yes I was a geography teacher and I do have a silver certificate in map reading but this is Spain !!!

The drive was however very pleasant with dual carriageway most of the way and some amazing landscapes, snow in the mountains with wall to wall sunshine! Let’s  forget the racing and relax. Arriving in Soria a little later than planned we quickly located the hotel and set out to explore the town. The weekend is a sporting festival and the flags and grandstand was in place creating a fantastic atmosphere in the main square where the start and finish area is. 

My early morning run to recce the course was like running a park run ! Lovely location and surroundings with some ups and downs. Registration was a breeze and the goody bag contained a rucksack and local food samples, so far all good and a leisurely walk along the river rounded off  an excellent first day.  However a few things to ponder on which Paul Jepcott will I’m sure recognise. The team GB website for the race is full of information but it’s also full of other competitors problems and anxieties. It’s enough controlling the monkey on your own shoulder let alone other people’s!  One thing is for sure Soria stands at over 1200m above sea level, the bike route follows the road to the mountains and it’s likely to be strong winds and possible rain on race day.

There were lots of stories about the local police giving heavy fines (150/200 euros) for speeding and illegal parking and the local restaurants didn’t actually provide the food needed by over 1000 athletes, all this adding to the fun and experience of my first international.

Race day:

With the first wave starting at 8.15am it was an early start and the hotel served a much needed breakfast from 4.30am. From there it was an easy walk to pick up the bike and access the transition  area. The triathletes amongst you will understand the care needed and the faff that takes place in racking the bike. The weather was warm no rain but the predicted 30mph headwind was gradually building. My plan was to run my normal 5k pace saving a bit for the uphill climb to transition, and so it worked out with a 23.04 run on a tough undulating zigzag course. Reaching T1 in 6th place and 3rd GB. The drama now begins and I was determined to give it all on the bike ! Riding out of Soria on the dual carriageway over the viaduct and along the motorway before the climb starts, at this point the elite ladies who started 3mins behind us, had caught up and I was able to cruise up the hill with them. On the return downhill the crosswind kicked in and looking at my speedo at 37mph it was a scary descent. A couple of lady riders were blown over,  fortunately no serious casualties but a lot of DFs.

I survived the bike ! And as Sue, Paul et al know ‘it’s all about the bike’ I had minimised the time loss as best I could and had a good T2 before the final 2.5k run. The jelly legs were fine and I managed to pick off a few more athletes in the final run in before turning in to the final 200m picking up my GB flag and crossing the finish line feeling I had given it my all on my GB debut.

I finished 7th in my age group – Spain 1st, France 2nd, GB 3rd – and was 4th Brit. Post race thoughts; I could have done better on the run and despite a big improvement on the bike I need to work harder in training. However a great honour to wear the vest and I’m now looking ahead to the ‘Worlds’ in august and hopefully more GB selections in the future. If you get the opportunity to be part of it take it !