I have now formally entered the world of multi-activity races with a duathlon last Sunday. It was a small local event and for those interested in the stats the results are here. I wasn't last but as good as. However, the real benefit was the learning gained in this new world of tri and duathlons.
Lesson 1
Don't believe event organisers when they say that their event is used by lots of newbies. Hah! at the gun the field set-off like greyhounds on the 1st leg; a 4 mile (7km) run. This was nothing like the starts encountered in mass run 10km or half marathon races or even smaller events like the Upon Bishop Big Dipper. This was clearly a race of superfits where the majority of participants put in better than 6 minute mile pace. I was left trailing way behind with no one around to use to judge pace. By the end of the race I was dodging the leaders heading home and marshals eagerly clearing up; never the best way to finish any event.
So expect the field to be superfits a plenty and pretty thin on first time fun runner types. This is clearly a very different world.
Lesson 2
Don't celebrate not being lapped on the cycle course before starting the last lap. Starting the ride so far behind the pack left few targets. OK, so I did catch two but I was caught by two of the few I did finish ahead of in run 1. So the best I could hope for was avoiding a lapping. I was about 200m from achieving this when the two leaders went past like I was standing still. This was a 9 mile lead! devastating.
Lesson 3
Running after cycling is unbelievably painful. The cycle after the run was not has difficult as I had been expecting. However, my body exacted revenge when the 2nd run came. Although only 2 miles, it was like running on stilts. Butt muscles I didn't know existed seized solid and legs just refused to bend or extend into any kind of stride. My 8 min/mile pace of the first run collapsed to a nearly 9:30 min/mile pace. This is going to need some attention in training.
Lesson 4
The vaguaries of transition. This was a great lesson. Transition is the rather cliquey word used to describe the scramble to get out of one set of kit and don the paraphernalia needed for the next activity. Running shoes off, cycle shoes on, helmet on, change of gloves etc etc. First, remember where you put your bike. Sounds simple, but when kit is strewn everywhere, so many bikes that look similar and the fact that you arrived knackered it can be hard to navigate Of course arriving from Run 1 so far behind everyone else made it easier, but arriving back from the cycle also far behind meant finding my space and re-racking the bike surprisingly difficult.
I was also amazed at how fast the tri-nuts do transition. I thought my times of just under 2 mins not too bad but most of the participants had this down to a 30-45s activity. So practice here is required although I note that had I transitioned in the average time the improvement in overall time would only have moved me up 3 places.
Lesson 5
Get a box. It seemed so obvious when I saw it but I arrived wondering to manage quick access to cycle kit, keeping it dry during the run and storing the running shoes in the dry during the cycle. I had a sports bag, bin liners (standard issue for fun runners) and plastic bags. Proper tri-nuts simply turned up with a plastic storage box with clip-on lid. Problem solved.
So the Peopleton Duathlon was a great learning experience and in spite of a lowly finishing place I actually went quicker than I had expected. But must practice changing shoes and must get a box.
