Mark Jacobs Andover Triathlon Race Report 17th July 2011

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The Second sprint race of my triathlon career after Salisbury was Andover, it appealed to me as the race was slightly longer with a 440m pool swim, 18.3mile bike and a 5.1mile run. The event was well publicised and other members of Salisbury Tri Club speak highly in regard to the event and with the new timing chip system this was also a bonus to try out.

I had a keen eye on the weather on the run up to the event hoping for a gap in the weather after Saturday’s miserable wet day. Sunday morning was promising on the drive to Andover with some roads completely dry, but hope soon sank down the drain as I arrived at Farleigh School as the rain also turned up. My mental focus now was on the bike leg due to having not fully tested the new carbon bike in wet conditions.

Having my mind set on the bike leg the swim nerves subsided as I donned a swimming cap which was also new to me for the race. As the race was started I didn’t sprint off the start to hard as I did in my last race and soon found a rhythm and the new swimming cap felt good on the head which carried me nicely through the water. One of the swimmers was latched on with no intention of passing as I found myself referring to the top gear episode where the Dodge viper helps the Transit draft around the Nurburgring! As I lost count of the amount of lengths I had done the 2 lengths left board was a welcome sight, a quick turn around and an exit from the pool I ran over the timing mat with a satisfied beep my timing chip had made whilst pulling off the ultra tight cap.

T1 I opted to wear gloves as I didn’t want any slip from the bars on the downhills and I also went for socks and sunglasses with a hope it would coax the sun out and keep my eyes open fully on the downhills and straights. Crossed the timing mat and another satisfied beep then mounted the bike, turning left out the school the other cyclists were still finding their bearings on the bike I picked off a few of the faster wave from the swim, filling me with confidence and the bike performing brilliantly in the wet I progressed without a hitch. About halfway met a stretch of road which was being resurfaced with loose chippings, I killed off speed to avoid punctures and losing the front end of the bike. The last climb for home was about a mile, I took on board an energy gel that nearly instantly resurfaced.

T2 was better than Salisbury, no nonsense slipped soggy shoes on and straight out for the run. The run was tough at the start, all uphill for the first quarter of the course, I struggled to find my legs until the 2k marker. Once the course descended into Clatford my legs started to open up and managed to take a place on Barrow Hill. After the 6k marker came the Fullerton road uphill to the finish, as I approached the junction to turn into the school I was 200m behind another place and found some pace that I lacked in Salisbury’s race and sprinted past to the finish with the final beep of the day.

There are still improvements in all areas that can and will be made but I was quietly chuffed with how the day went considering the changing conditions of the British summertime. The timing chip system was such an improvement on the alternative print off method, with instant results on a TV monitor by punching in a race number I found myself in 39th overall with a time of 1hr57, under the 2 hours I was aiming for in nominal conditions. The marshals and drinks teams were especially helpful and thanks to the organisers at Andover for a providing a great event. Special thanks to the coaches at Salisbury Triathlon Club the last 4 months of training is really starting to pay off.

(UPDATED : 18/07/2011)

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Author: Mark Jacobs - 18 July 2011 17:16