Duathlon Cymru

Duathlon Cymru at Margam castle. Sunday 12th March 2017.
Challenge Wales Events.

Motel room 'Selfie' early start !

I had a different race booked for this weekend but unfortunately the company closed down and refunded us our entry fee, so I quickly googled Duathlons for today's date and this one came up. It was sold out but I spotted on their facebook page that 10 extra places had become available and I was quick to dive in and get one.  It was the first running of this event. Two distances were available, Classico and Piccolo. (Olympic and Sprint.) I opted for Classico.

The (short) 10k run was 2 laps through the beautiful wooded trails around Margam castle. Some of it hard standing and some of it trail. There was a short sharp hill to contend with on each lap which added a little sting! I had a pretty good run and finished it as 2nd lady.







 T1 was fluid and I headed out onto the 40k bike route.....2 loops of a 2 lap course. This description confused me so we took time to clarify what this meant, as it also involved several roundabouts, so we drove the course the night before so that I had it clear in my head! It was flat (one little rise) and fast with a really good road surface and very little traffic. I raced well, negotiated the course correctly and came into T2 as 1st lady. 

Earthy.

T2 was good although I should've left my trainers upside down as they were full of rain water when I put them on.

The last run was a (short) 5k loop through Margam park again... wet, muddy, earthy.. lovely, however I was really aware of the short sharp hill this time around! 

Winner!

 I didn't have a lot of company at this point, (other than the horse box that tried to follow me down the course to the finish gantry !) but again I ran well, all be it on stumpy cold feet, and finished the race 1st lady. 

Unfortunately there was dispute as the lady who finished 2nd (she was in the lead at the end of run 1) told the race organisers that she had not seen me cycle passed her on the bike leg. After a short discussion it became clear that she had cycled the wrong course and turned at a wrong roundabout, this must have been when I nipped in front of her as she would have cycled a little further than she needed to.

Prizegiving 'crackajack' style !

In the briefing before the race started the organiser explained the route twice and clearly asked if anybody was unsure of the route, nobody asked any questions on it. Later, on 'Strava' we checked out my 'flybys' and spotted a few others had made the same mistake as the woman that finished second, however the majority of people cycled the correct route.


In the meantime as the official winner of the ladies race I picked up a Slate trophy (cheese plate) 2 pairs of technical running socks, a bottle of prosecco and a beautiful bouquet of flowers! 

I really enjoyed this race but it has to be said that there is a little room for improvement in some areas. However, it was the first running of this event and the first duathlon that the race organisers had put on. For me the positives outweigh the negatives. If this race takes place again next year I would definitely recommend it. The setting is beautiful, the run through Margam park is stunning and the bike course is like a 25 mile TT course. 

Moral of the story, 'know the course!' It's all part of a successful race day.

Margam Castle