Weekend Round Up 10th 11th September
An incredibly sad end to the week with news about the death of Her Majesty the Queen. We express our sympathy to the royal family from everyone at Tuff Fitty
There was an immediate impact with Richmond Marathon cancelled as it passed through the Royal Parks and Hampton Court. It has been rescheduled for 9th Oct; we had four runners entered and wish them well for the reschedule. There was also the postponement of the Adur swim on the Saturday, although this was primarily due to weather conditions impacting water quality. This has been rescheduled for Saturday 24th Sept.
Elsewhere race action continued with some phenomenal racing from our squad. The superlative performance of Gavin Sewell has been reported separately from Ironman Wales but we have a report from the beach in Dorset followed by a trip to Wales at Helvellyn for a really courageous tale.
BOURNEMOUTH INTERNATIONAL TRIATHLON
Held adjacent to Bournemouth Pier on the sands under Westcliff gardens this long established triathlon was host to a variety of different multisport events; Sprint and Standards tri’s, an Aquathlon, Standard Aquabike and 2.5k or 5k swims. The venue also served as Triathlon England’s Standard distance championships, so there was a lot of racing talent on display. Tuff Fitty had three people racing; what do they say about cream rising to the top – superb performances and reports from James Mapley, James Togneri and Sue Simpson. We start with James Mapley who undertook the Sprint distance Tri.
BOURNEMOUTH SPRINT DISTANCE TRIATHLON
“Crystal clear skies and a stunning sunrise over Bournemouth pier set the scene for the national championships. I was racing the sprint, James Togneri the Aquabike and I learnt Sue Simpson, the Aquabike. The swim for the sprint was a 750m dash, starting on the beach with a mass start running to the water. I felt as though I positioned myself well on the right hand side of the crowd, rounding the first buoy in third and keeping the place to and through T1. The transition was up the zig zag climb from the beach and certainly stung the legs. The bike leg took us out of Bournemouth and onto the Wessex way – a largely flat and fast dual carriageway – before heading back into Bournemouth. A few kicker climbs finished the last 0.5km before we went into T2″.
“The legs felt good heading off on the run and I could see the guy in second ahead. The promenade run was pan flat with zero wind which made pacing easier. The guys in front were strong runners and held their places and we all crossed the line with a minute and 7 seconds between us. It was a great event and saw me hilariously attempting to spray champagne for the first time on a podium. I’m looking forward to a bit of recovery now before hitting the winter training. A great first season as a Tuff!
James
Next up James Togneri
BOURNEMOUTH – STANDARD DISTANCE AQUABIKE
“I arrived in Bournemouth 2 days before the race with the wife and kids . We had a hotel which was mainly booked for a stag do . As you can imagine we didn’t get much sleep and everyone was tired and ratty the next day” .
“By 11am I decided I needed a beer so we went to the pub ! 5 pints later I realised its probably a good time to start rehydrating and pick my race pack up. This was a very organised and swift process” .
Race day
“Again I woke up tired from the neighbours antics. I really couldn’t be bothered to race and felt like driving home . I used this to my advantage and thought ‘just go and have fun’ , forget about being 100% primed and go and enjoy it . This worked really well as it took all the pressure of my expectations of trying to qualify for the aquabike world champs in 2023”.
“The swim was a 1.5k sea swim, so loads of room and it was nice and calm . There were some seriously fast guys who stormed off and I just swam as hard as I could trying to not let the gap get any bigger. I expected to feel crap but I was feeling amazing so Iwas looking forward to the bike . After exiting the swim to get to transition you had to go up a lovely half mile zig zag hill which was not fun” .
“I jumped on the bike and stormed off . 10 miles in I still felt amazing and was absolutely loving the bike course . There were 4 different races on so plenty of people to overtake and make myself feel even better . I didn’t see anyone from the aquabike race after the swim and nobody passed me on the bike”.
“It was one of my best races and I felt great so that always makes it better”.
“I gave it my all as I had in my head I had to come top 3 in my age category and within 115%of the winner to qualify “.
“It couldn’t have gone much better” .
“I came 16th out of 115 and 2nd in my age category which meant I qualified for world champs in 2023”.
“What a great race ! very well organised and the marshals were brilliant . Highly recommend it” .
James
Sue Simpson, as reported by husband Colin
BOURNEMOUTH – STANDARD DISTANCE AQUABIKE
“A couple of weeks ago Sue and I took our new campervan to the New Forest for a few days. Of course whilst there we decided to enter the local Sprint triathlon ! Interesting event….the swim was only 400m in the local lake but the first transition allowed us to remove wetsuits and don trainers….Why ? Well there was now a 1 mile run to the ‘real’ transition…a quick change and off onto the ‘sprint’ bike course…mmmm…a hilly 21 miles not k….the same course as those in the standard race…avoiding the horses, cows and tourists we change for the 4k run (nearly 5k!) . It was an enjoyable if odd event and as we were leaving they announced Sue as first in her age group so a big bonus…
“This proved to be a good warm up for last weekends event… I had the rare treat of being bag man and spectator as Sue was racing the aquabike at Bournemouth…a qualifier for the Worlds next year in Spain. She had a good 1500m swim followed by a 400m climb up the cliffs to transition and onto the bike….its a fast bike course but does have a cheeky 10% climb near the finish. Sue secured 3rd in her age group so should have qualified…This means she has a choice next year as we had both already qualified pre covid for the standard triathlon….Good to meet James Togneri who had a fantastic fast race in the aquabike and also looks to have qualified…
Colin
HELVELLYN TRIATHLON
Billed as one of the toughest Triathlons in the world, the swim is in Lake Ullswater, the cycle included up to the top of Kirkstone Pass, (1489ft) Then run up and down Helvellyn (3118ft). Tom Frith had entered and you just have to read his full report for the way Tom arrived… and finished ! What a courageous & determined performance.
“And it was all going so well…
“Helvellyn Tri has a well- earned reputation as a challenging race. It would be my first time taking on a proper mountain run course”.
“I was looking to ride up from the South coast, but time pressures and a dodgy weather forecast in the week before and after the event made me re-examine that plan and I drove up 2/3rds of the way and left my car on a mate’s drive on the Wirral”.
“I quite like taking in a cycle tour as a form of base training, as I often struggle with the motivation to go out on a ride, but if there’s an objective, no matter how spurious, it can be an incentive to keep the wheels turning. It was part of the season’s plan to complete this, have a couple of week’s relaxed training and turn up for Hever Castle Club Champs Race fully tapered”.
“If the weather’s kind, and not too much kit is taken, biking is a lovely way to get around the backways and byways of a country that much has been changed forever by the motor vehicle and associated transport infrastructure. I followed the Lancaster canal for a while and at one point was on the towpath with traffic on M6 to my left and canal boats to my right. I may not have been the fastest mode of transport on that day, but I was making contented progress and arrived in the Lakes after 2 relaxed days”
“Gillside campsite was booked for Saturday, pre race and was ideal, if a little tempting for a mid race nap, as I set up camp no more than 50 metres off the run route, where it’s still possible to run. 150m later it’s a lung-bursting, panting hands on hips or pushing down on knees struggle against gravity and an uneven rocky path”.
“A chat and a couple of pints with fellow competitors in the conveniently located Traveller’s Rest on the eve of the race was handy to get the lowdown on the event, and calm the nerves. I was pleased to have made it to the start line, everything else was a bonus. I’d booked a breakfast at 7.30am at the YHA Patterdale, transition due to close at 8am with a race briefing at 8.15. and just squeaked in, but my prospects were not going to be great on an empty stomach for completing something of half ironman duration and I guessed that as a fairly low key event, with about 400 competitors, things would be a little relaxed”.
“A thin mist rising from the Lake, at 15-16 degrees the water was bracing, weather cloudy, but with a mild Southerly zephyr , it was as good as it gets in this part of the world for an endurance event. I was in the second wave of the water start , the 1500m 2 lap swim course was clearly buoyed and I was pleasantly surprised to be making decent unencumbered progress at the front of the intermediate group and was catching up with the faster athletes who started a minute ahead”.
“Into transition, 25 minutes later, there were plenty of bikes, but having chosen to use a touring bike for ride up it was a bit of a faff about putting shoes on when I’d normally have the tri shoes clipped into pedals and rubber banded to the bike when racing “properly.”
“Out on bike course, undulating up the side of Ullswater, I was getting into a steady rhythm. It was good to pass a number of people, and a few people passed me going really well. I’m not sure what the proper athletes made of my steel Dawes Audax with pannier rack and clip on bar extensions but I tried to keep out of trouble and was happy with my form until Calvin from Bideford, who I was chatting to in the pub, breezed past me 10 miles later. There was a 2.5 mile ascent going up to the Kirkstone Inn towards the end of the bike leg that would take a lot out of me. I’d ridden it the day before fully laden so I knew it was possible with my lowest 25t gear on the back and 30t granny ring of the triple but the locals, who know about hills are not joking when they call it “The Struggle”.
“I was happy to maintain position up this tortuous climb, and was able to put on a little burst of speed up past the crest cheered on by a load of spectators lining the roadside. The descent was a total buzz, road surface a little damaged in places, but sight lines over and around the drystone walls sufficiently good that fantastic progress and a few places could be gained, including past a dawdling van. I was hoping for something closer to a couple of hours for the hilly 38mile course, but rolled into transition after just under 2 and quarter hours”.
“It was the 9 mile run up to over 900m that was likely to be an issue for me. I have struggled with persistent Achilles tendinopathy in the past and have managed so far to get away with a decent bike split and a survival, “just get it done” mode for the run. I was going to have to take it really easily on this part. There were a couple of people passing me in the valley but I was passing a few as well. I was tired but generally feeling ok, was walking on flatter sections higher up the hill where the better trail runners were breaking into a run. I knew the descent would be hard on tired legs , so while not dreading it was looking to approach this final phase with circumspection. First the high point had to be reached and this was via Swirral Edge, plenty of scrambling and pulling, pushing with arms, while trying to focus on the most efficient route, cloud rolling in with walkers in full mountain gear, politely standing by offering encouragement. Sometimes I’d pass a gaggle of 5 or 6 by taking a more difficult line up the top of ridgeline, while the more polished rock of the path, it you could call it that, seemed to twist and lose a few metres of hard fought elevation. It was probably more down to blind luck than any considered route plan that I’d made it to the cairn at the top. There were marshals and way markers, but the topography helped with the Navigation in the cloud, I just had to stay on the ridgeline and follow it right and right, after a small ascent to then continue the descent proper”
“Now this race attracts local fell running specialists and this was where I was thoroughly outclassed. For the serious, and habituated fell runners, flying down was a great opportunity to save time. I was careful and hyper aware of how quickly things can go wrong so was trying to maintain focus on foot placement while jogging down, and not concerned too much with speed as people steamrollered past me down the loose rocky track. I’d lost about 200m of elevation and the rocky part of the fell behind me when the gravel track interspersed with drainage culverts opened up. This was a beautifully smooth section with no adverse camber or tricky rocks, and I must have let my guard down because I turned my ankle badly after jumping a culvert and ended up rolling about for a couple of minutes on the grass by the track. A few runners stopped and asked if I was ok, but I waved them on. After a while I managed to compose myself and get up and was pleasantly surprised to find that I could put some weight on my injured left ankle so proceeded to hobble down, very slowly”.
“This took almost an hour and a half, I wasn’t wearing a watch, but I got the occasional time check from passing runners; and walkers by this stage! I was so relieved when I got over the line, I went straight to the medical support and forgot to grab my finishers’ medal. Thankfully my brother lives in Windermere and drove over to pick me and my stuff up. He also very kindly took me for an x-ray at Kendal hospital where a stable fracture of fibula was identified. I was on my way with a new boot and crutches within an hour or so. The NHS at its best!”
“It’s a fantastic event and a real sense of achievement to complete. I would thoroughly recommend it and would be keen to do again with fellow Tuffs if any are interested. There would however be a few things that I’d do differently”.
“Although I didn’t go out to injure myself, it was always a possibility. I underestimated the severity of the test, specific exercises to strengthen my lower limbs before taking on such a challenge would have helped. This event is too hard to be used as a training run for an older “athlete” not used to the fells. I needed to take heed of the good advice I was given, even my son thought that it would be better to race not having ridden some of the way there and he’s eight!”
“Save time and energy on flatter undulations of bike leg with a TT bike, but have sufficiently low gearing for The Struggle, rather than using a touring bike.”
“The best of luck to everyone racing at Hever Castle. I’ll be back, but it may take a while…”
Tom
PARKRUN ROUND UP
We start this week at the home of parkrun – Bushy Park parkrun – this is where is all began and is the mecca for parkrun tourism. Held in the Royal Park Alistair Evans ran here for the fourth time in amongst 1,229 other runners taking his grand total to 98 parkruns. Bushy Park also saw a world record broken for the most number of deaf runners at a parkrun – 45, smashing the previous record of 28
Up in Manchester for his brothers wedding, Alex Webb took part in Alexandra Park parkrun in Moss side. Alex clearly travels well as he finished 15th overall out of 274 finishers in a time of 18:46, just 10 seconds outside his parkrun pb. Alex points out his brother is on the left looking like a 118 advert 🙂
More parkrun tourism this time at the Whiteley parkrun, just off the A27 close to the Shopping centre. Emily Vaz kept up her rapid running finishing as first female overall in 19:44 for her 29th different parkrun location – 138 in all. Also taking in this parkrun ahead of next day’s Bournemouth Triathlon was Sue Simpson along with Colin. This was Colin Simpson’s 62nd different parkrun location. For Sue this was her 53rd different park run location – impressive tourism from all three.
At Littlehampton parkrun Richard Budd achieved a new parkrun PB finishing his 43rd Littlehampton run (187 in total) in 21:16. Jason Rae finished in 24:18 – there wasn’t a Bognor parkrun this week. Steve Bridgeman was our next runner. We are also proud to report on Paul Thomas, one of our more recent members. Paul completed his first parkrun this weekend – congratulations. Nick Hartfield was on the organising team
Maidenhead parkrun saw Trevor Harvey in action around the off road course completing his 52nd parkrun, a two lap course around a nature reserve.
No parkrun at Bognor this week but across at Worthing parkrun Les Pearce was running on his 168th outing finishing in 23:28 as first Tuff home. James Oram was next finishing in 24:14. Phil Turner was followed on his 85th run. Kate Evans and Sheila Bailey ran together completing their 35th and 47th parkruns respectively. Elaine Rousseau on her 139th run completed the Tuff contingent
Well done to all seventeen
