West Bay sprint tri on 1st September was a massive jump out of my comfort zones. I got involved in the slightly mad world of triathlon a couple of years ago after a lifetime of dinghy sailing. Sailing had taught me swimming in the sea only happens when things have gone wrong and is avoided at all costs particularly in a race! That said after acquiring a wet suit and a few practices I felt ready.

My first mistake was to sprint across the beach, I suddenly realised I was one of the first swimmers in the water and all those behind me were clearly of a higher standard! Time to get out there way, and I now know that triathlon is a contact sport!

After an embarrassingly slow swim I could finally get into my comfort zone, the bike! The course suited me, fast and hilly. I quickly made progress managing to catch most of the field but didn’t have enough road ahead of me to trouble the front runners. I only saw Chris Petersen going the other way, probably six miles ahead of me.

Oh well onto the run to make a bit more progress and again back in my comfort zones. A hilly off-road run with stunning views. What more could I want. The run enabled me to pass a few more competitors but the dreadful swim was clearly going ensure I wouldn’t trouble the front of the field. I finally crossed the line in tenth place.
First placed male in the 50 to 60 age category but a rather hollow victory as I was beaten by a chap in the over 60 group!

In summary a great event and I clearly need to work on my open water swimming.

A strong turnout for NDTri at the West Bay Triathlon Photo credits: Dave Hewes and Joanna Stoker