Going In A straight Line (Sharm Triathlon Race Report)

My first race in 2014 happened to be a race in my home town of Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The thought of going there excited me beyond words! I have been waiting for this race for exactly one year, since I heard about it in 2013 when it was too late for me to go. Moreover, I haven't been back home for nearly 3 years, so there was the extra excitement of going home and catching up with people.

As my main goal for 2014 is racing the Half Ironman distance, this race's goal, being a sprint, was to see where I was, try a couple of new things, and gauge what I needed to work on for my first main race of the year, coming up in May. So, as beating time was not an issue, I didn't have to worry much about racing, but to focus on what I was doing, what was working, and what wasn't. And, to my satisfaction, some things did go wrong, and some lessons have been learnt! This post details some of the things that went right and wrong.

About to cross the finish line

Silver in 40-44 age group

The past few races, I have got into the habit of arriving a few days early to get comfortable with the race courses, and this was no exception. I spent a lot of time around the race area, got a couple of swims where the race was to be held, went on rides around the bike and run courses, so everything seemed familiar. The only thing that wasn't very clear was the exact swim course, which we would have found out just the evening before the race.

Weather conditions were odd, to say the least. There were very short but heavy downpours of rain, and the forecast for race day was 50-50 chance of rain. The temperature was hovering between 18 and 25, so it was not bad at all. Actually, I found the temperature to be very pleasant. Water temperature was around 24, so this was rather nice and and warm as well.

Race morning came, and I made sure I went down early to watch the elite races take place, and to see how the swim course was set up. Being there early also gave me the chance to talk to 2 people I coach about the final details of the race. The 3 of us happened to be racing at the same time, so I wouldn't have had the chance to see them racing, so all had to be said before we set off.

Friends were around before the start, and they were able to come in with me in transition (something I have never seen anywhere else, but rather nice). Luckily, I needed some energy, so I asked a friend to get me a Snickers bar, to which he obliged. Thanks John! Another friend was with me in transition all the way through the set up, taking pictures, so I was feeling like a celebrity with my own personal photographer ;) Thanks Clare! More pictures in transition and on the run. Thanks Doro!

With bike in transition, warm-up done, and all now ready, I made my way down to the swim start pontoon. I took my place on the inside, hoping that I would get a decent line in my 750m swim. I know I'm not as fast as the fastest swimmers, but I consider myself to be a confident and decent enough swimmer, not to mind the arms and legs that form the initial washing machine effect. Actually, thinking of it, I do like this mess in the beginning (I know I can be odd).

The swim started. Legs and arms everywhere. I sight the first buoy, which was around 100m away. I can see the first group up front, not too far, and I'm feeling really good! I pass quite a few people on the way, and I have a very good rhythm going.

First buoy reached, turn right, try to sight the second buoy, which should be around 200m away. No sign of the buoy. Groups of swimmers spread everywhere in the sea, so I don't know which group to follow, and I decide to make sure I see the buoy myself before heading in any direction. I see a buoy in the distance, and I go for it. The buoy is getting closer, and I'm swimming nicely, but oddly enough, I feel like I'm swimming all alone! All of a sudden, a boat comes racing towards me and someone is shouting "you're going the wrong way"! DAMN! I stop to check where I am, the only buoy I see is the one I am heading for. I ask the boat where I should be going, and 2 people on board start to point in different directions. So, one thing to do at that point; shout at them! I ask them to just have one person tell me which direction I should be going. Someone points to my left, I look there, I find a lot of splashing and what looks like a tiny orange dot ahead of them.

I change direction, and start to swim towards that little orange dot. As I reach it, I see that the buoy is deflated. No wonder I didn't see it... Later on I discover that the first group of swimmers took the same line I took, but the boat caught them in time, but then didn't see me, and by the time they got back to me, it was about 3 minutes later.

I turn at the deflated buoy, and head to the third one, around 300 metres away. Then I start to overtake some female swimmers!!! The women started at least 5 minutes after us! At this point, I knew that I have had a very long swim, rather than the nice 750 metres I was supposed to have. I reach the third buoy, turn right, and I hit a guy I overtook at the very start of the swim. This is not looking great at all! Now, the only thought that comes to mind is "Great! I don't have to worry about my time. From now on, I'm enjoying this!"

Fourth buoy, then exit, I look at my watch, and my swim time is 16 minutes!!! That is about 5 minutes more than what I had anticipated. No surprise there, though. When I check the distance later, it is over 950 metres.

I run towards transition, and I start hearing my name being called. I didn't expect that this would make me as happy! It was definitely very nice to hear people cheering for me! Now I understand that whole thing about "racing at home"...

Transition 1: throw my hat and goggles in the box, put on glasses and helmet, take the bike and run towards the mount line. Jump on the bike, feet in attached shoes, start spinning, elastic bands snap, secure velcro, all gone perfectly. Attack that first hill, lap 1 of 3 underway.

The bike course was fine, with a bit of head and side wind, but nothing major to worry about. As I am now not caring about times, I start cheering on every person I come across on the bike course! All the guys coming from Cairo with their bright yellow tops, anyone I don't know, I'm just enjoying this so much! I'm even enjoying overtaking the same guy I overtook at the very start of the swim! (Note to self: you need to make sure your swim distance is the same as everyone else's!)

The hill at the start of each bike lap is a moderate one, and it goes on for about 2-3 kilometres. I find it hard to tackle, so this is something I need to work on before going to Mallorca. Climbing.

On the third lap of the bike, I come across a guy who has his helmet back to front. I come over next to him and tell him that his helmet is the wrong way around. We exchange a few words, and laugh a bit, and I give him way at the 180 degree turning point. As I turn, I see a couple of people from Cairo in the distance coming on their bikes, so I slow down and shout out some encouragement.

Down the hill, getting ready to dismount. Feet out of shoes, slowing down, and off the bike I jump. Maybe a bit too fast, but nothing too bad. I run with the bike to transition, hang the bike on the railing, helmet off, shoes on, and off I go. T2 goes very nicely without a hitch.

The run course consists of 2 laps, each lap starts with an uphill all the way and downhill on the way back. As I get out of transition and start my run, I hear some amazingly loud cheers and see friends on the sides. This is very nice indeed! :)

I check my watch to see how my pace is going, and I'm off to a start that's a bit quicker than I had planned. I'm going 3:55/km, and the plan is to stick to somewhere between 4:00-4:15 until the last downhill. I slow down a bit and I'm feeling great! In the race briefing, we were told that there would be a water station at the top of the hill. So, I don't take in water from the first water station, but as I get to the top of the hill, sweating away and starting to really need water, I find out that there is no water station. I'm not the only one in this situation, as I hear a lot of people asking for water, only to be told that there was none. Anyway, nothing much I can do, I turn around at the top, and start heading down the hill.

The run is going very nicely, and it feels like a nice jog more than a race. Hearing my name being called and seeing friends' faces and the cheers just makes this an amazingly nice experience! I get my water at the bottom of the hill, turn around for my second lap, go up the hill, and back down again. As I'm about to reach the end of the run and get to the finish line, I see the guy who had his helmet the wrong way around, and he seems to be suffering a bit. I slow down and cheer him on and it seems to work. Nice :) I see my friends on the side, and I smile for some pictures. I get to the finish line, and I feel wonderful. I'm thinking to myself, I'm glad this feels like the way it does, as I can now be more comfortable looking at the 70.3 distance in May.

I stop my watch, and I have done 1:20! I am much fitter and much much faster than when I did 1:14 last year! But, I swam 750 metres last year. And I didn't stop in the middle either. And I didn't slow down to cheer for people... Anyway, this is not about the time. I enjoyed every minute of it (apart from when I realised I was going in the wrong direction).

Photos, banter, more photos, water, food, and more photos. I find the 2 guys I'm coaching to see how they have done. They have both done really well, one of them hitting exactly the target we set, but the other one seemed a bit down. He had some stomach and breathing issues, but still, he has done extremely well. One of them was racing in the under 23 category, and we find out later that he still achieved a decent position despite his stomach pain and less than perfect race, and the other one gets second place in his age group. I'm so proud of them both!!!

I find my phone later on, send a message to my wife, Lisa, to tell her about my race. The answer I get back about my swim: "You did it in Madrid a bit too. Something to bear in mind..." (Note: Lisa was with me when I was racing in Madrid last year).

I find out that I finished second in my age group. Guess who came in first? The guy with the helmet the wrong way around ;)

So, my conclusions from this race:

1. I need to work on swimming in a straight line

2. I still need some bike strength

3. I'm happy with my running

4. It is amazing to hear one's name being called out during the race

5. I have met some amazing people, all thanks to triathlon!

Next stop: 70.3 Mallorca on the 10th of May. My first Half Ironman distance. A lot of hard work the coming few weeks!

I love the journey as much as I love the destination! :)

Bike check-in

Another lap on the bike

Starting the run