Crowborough Tri Club News

April 2026 Newsletter

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 15:47:06 GMT

Crowborough Tri Club

Newsletter April 2026

Hello Everyone,

You will have seen the details of forthcoming events from JoJo and Rosie's WhatsApp messages. This is a quick newsletter for those who might not have seen it, and also news of past achievements.

April

This weekend on Sat 18th the club is holding its annual mini triathlon at the leisure centre. The format is simple. Be at the poolside for 0800 for a 200m swim, followed by a 20k on a spin bike at 0930 - 1030. Then an easy run on the track 2.5k or 5k, your choice. I would then think we could all foregather for a coffee and a chat. It might also be fun to wear our club tri suits for those who have them. Please sign in on the website so we have some idea of numbers. Come along and join in!

The next date for your diary is Monday 27th April for the AGM after the swim session. 7.30pm - 9.30pm at the Boars Head Pub. It is a relaxed evening and a really good opportunity to hear what the club is doing and plans for the future. It is also your chance to have a say, and also a good time to meet up and have a chat or two over a drink and something to eat.

May

The annual club cycle ride is heading for Folkestone on 16th May, Starting at 0900. Again please sign up so we know numbers. More detailed information nearer the time.

In the meantime … lots of club members have been super busy.

On the 1st March Heather and her sister Bex ran the Brighton half marathon. Not only is this a significant distance, they did it in appalling weather with strong wind and heavy rain. Congratulations, bravely done.

Christine ran the Hasting half marathon on 22nd March, in a very good time. Part of her London marathon training. Well done Christine.

April is certainly a busy month! Botts and Wes cycled to Roubaix in France to watch the Paris-Roubaix cycle event, often called "The Hell of the North". Incredible distances being cycled, but that's Botts and Wes for you! What an experience.

Sarah Smith was away in France doing some mammoth cycles up the mountains; Alpe d'Huez being one of them. If there is a mountain, Sarah will be there! Incredible, well done Sarah. And then on her return, she ran the Brighton Marathon. There is no stopping her.

George had a great run at the Brighton Marathon on 12th April, sub 4 hours. An amazing run. Well done George. Rest and recuperate, and we will see you back on the bike soon!

At the same time on 12th April, Dean was racing at Mallory Park. It was a duathlon, and a qualifier for next year's World Champs in Canada. He came a very creditable and swift 4th place, especially as he had a "mess up" in transition. Something to do with shoes I believe.

That’s all for now folks. Happy swimming, cycling, running.

Annie

Communications

Newsletter Spring 2026

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 12:46:13 GMT

Crowborough Tri Club

Newsletter Spring 2026

Hello Everyone,

At last spring has arrived and our thoughts must certainly turn to being able to train outside, especially cycling, and running will be less muddy and open water swimming will follow soon. Our indoor turbo sessions will continue until the end of April, after which Thursday evening cycles will begin with the longer evenings.

However, before we get into recent achievements and future events …

Firstly, and really important, the club's AGM will be held after the swim session on Monday 27th April at the Boar's Head Inn starting at 7:30 pm.

The aim is to tell everyone about what's going on in the club, and discuss future events using your input. Please do come and have a drink, perhaps something to eat, have your say, catch up with other members and enjoy what is a relaxed (and not overlong) evening.

If you would like to join and be prepared to help on the committee, please consider putting your name forward to any of the committee members. The existing club committee are all happy to stand for re-election. At the moment it comprises:

Malcolm Clarke - Chairman

Dean Taylor - Chairman

JoJo - Secretary

Geoff - Treasurer

Rosie - Social Secretary

Andrew - Kit

Annie - Communications

However, I am hoping to be able to step back from my position on the committee as Communications and so hereby advertise the position. I feel it is time that a younger and perhaps more tech savvy member of the club to step forward to promote the club and all its activities, and to publish newsletters when appropriate. We have such a great club with so much going on, and I believe that the rôle is really important.

And now on to Recent Achievements!

So far this year, club members have already entered some events.

The Tunbridge Wells half marathon in February had Iain, Damian, Jane, George, Sam, and Sharon all running. Well done everyone.

Rob Atkinson took part in the annual Nordic Ski event in Vasaloppet, Sweden. It is a long distance endurance ski race over 90 km which took Rob 9 hours. A huge effort, which by all accounts nearly broke him, and he was doing it for charity ! We knew he could do it. So a big 'Well Done' to Rob. His Just Giving page is still open if anyone would like to donate to Mind. https://www.justgiving.com/page/robert-atkinson-vasaloppet

Also Paddock Wood half marathon took place with George, Geoff and Dean running. Not much information as yet but I gather it was a huge turnout of an estimated 2,500 runners for a flattish road race. Dean finished in 1hr 25.

On the cycling side of things I have heard that Botts, Andrew and Wes took part in the Kentish Killer on 1st March. This was a 100k sportif.

Not be outdone, Dean rode in the Hell of Ashdown the weekend before on 23rd February. Another 100k sportif and a huge event of up to 900 people.

Incredible riding, well done all of you. Such a great way to start your year.

Future Events:

Saturday 18th April is the club "mini tri" which is held at the Crowborough Leisure Centre and a great opportunity to use the skills practiced during the winter, and also to get together before the season starts. The format is:

200m TT in the pool between 08.00 and 09.00,

20k TT spin on the bike between 09.30 and 10.30.

Run on the track.

There is no transition nor road work.

It is a fun morning and a good excuse to get together as well as training.

There is a club ride on Saturday 16th May. This is not the IOW ride but a cycle ride to Folkestone. Then, for those who would like an easy return, catch the train home. I am sure there will be some who would love to ride back as well! There will also be an option of a shorter ride for those who don’t fancy the whole distance. More details nearer the time.

The Triathlon England South East Senior Series (TESESS). These are events for clubs in the area, and it's important for the club to enter some of these great local triathlons. And we need to stop Epsom from winning a fifth time !

Tonbridge Sprint Monday 4th May (Bank Hol)

East Grinstead Sprint Sunday 10th May

7 Oaks Sprint Sunday 17th May

Eastbourne Standard Sunday 12th July

Brighton and Hove Sprint Sunday 6th September

Southwater Relay Sunday 13th September

6th June - Blenheim Triathlon

It is in the diary as an event for as many club members as possible to come and race together. There are three start times to choose from, so we have chosen the 11 am start time. There are a few of us already booked in. So come along and join us.

If there are any other competition dates you have identified which might be of interest to other club members please let me know. Iain has already signed up for Ironman Tours on 14th June, and Bayman XXL * on 10th October. This might be a stretch for some of us, but they are very popular and sell out very quickly.

* Bayman XXL is at Mont-Saint-Michel in Brittany. Swim 3800m, Bike 180km, Run 42km.

That, I think, is the lot for the moment, although you never know someone somewhere will be doing something amazing.

Happy Training.

Annie Sidgwick

Communications

Christmas Newsletter

Tue, 09 Dec 2025 10:52:11 GMT

End of Year Newsletter

Crowborough Tri Club

Christmas Party 2025

As the year nears its end, the event season is over and winter training continues. The club celebrates another wonderful year of achievements and experiences, in and around the tri world.

The Christmas party was once again held again at the Huntsman, Eridge. This pub has made us very welcome over the years. It has a separate room for private functions and they had decorated it beautifully for our party. It is such a great chance to dress up for a relaxed social evening and get to chat to everyone - perhaps to someone who doesn’t swim in your lane on a Monday night! Twenty eight of us came, with a lot of laughter and chat to mull over the year's events, but also to recognise and celebrate the award winners.

The Jane Bolton cup for the club member who has contributed so much to the club over the year and achieved personal bests in competitions went to Josh. He competed in the Mallorca 70.3 in May, and Ironman Leeds in July .

The Sporting Achievement award went to Sarah Smith. She entered and took part in the gruelling Alpe d'Huez triathlon. An outstanding achievement on a hot day, particularly with a last minute decision for a non-wetsuit swim - always a challenge at an event.

Congratulations to both of you, hugely well deserved.

In summary, we have had such a great year with lots of people doing all sorts of different things, all of which (I hope) have been written up. Let's all enjoy a break over the festive period and we will see you all back again next year.

That’s all from me for this year!

Happy Christmas.

Annie

Communications

Newsflash October

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 12:43:42 GMT

NEWSFLASH

I know how you all love a Newsflash!!

Malcolm has suggested that it might be of interest for the club to have an outing to Blenheim Palace. They run a weekend of events covering 6th and 7th June with various different distances.

If any members are interested we could focus on Saturday 6th June for the sprint triathlon.

There is an early bird offer until the end of the month. Price will rise on the 1st November.

Enter now for the cheaper price.

It would be such fun if we could get a few of us together to compete.

For fun!!

Annie

Communications

Autumn Newsletter 2025 Part 2

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 08:58:52 GMT

Crowborough Tri Club

Autumn Newsletter 2025 Part 2

As there has been so much happening this summer, I rushed to get the newsletter out. I would now like to add a few more missing events!!

In June Pontevedra, North West Spain, was staging a two weekend multisport event. A charming medieval town with a fantastic atmosphere.

Dean went there to represent GBR in the World duathlon and came an very creditable 15th in his age group. Congratulations Dean.

The following weekend, 27th June, I too went to Pontevedra to represent GBR in the World aquathlon. I was up against some very fast women from New Zealand and Australia not to mention in the GBR team!

On the 19th of September, the long distance team of Iain, Botts, and Damien were also in action in Cervia, Italy. It was a very hot day at 30 degs, but fast and flat when they started out on their IM race.

Iain, competing in his 8th IM, finished in 12hrs. 42. A great time!

Botts's time was 14:28 in his second IM race. He was heard to say "I hate everything about running!"

A brilliant performance from Damien in his first full IM race. Completing it in 13 hrs 37.

Gabriel raced in the 70.3 on the Sunday in 7 hrs:12 having started the race at midday in full sun. That’s an amazing performance.

Huge congratulations to you all.

On 28th September saw the local 10k race held at Eridge Park. Dean excelled again and came 10th overall. His training for the Yorkshire marathon is going well!

Latest news in - On Sunday 5th October, Christine ran the Hastings Half Marathon and completed it in a very creditable 2hrs 26.19 and came 3rd in her category. Training is beginning for London marathon in April. Go Christine!

I think that is all for now. Fingers crossed.

Annie

Commmunications

Newsletter Autumn 2025

Sun, 05 Oct 2025 16:35:11 GMT

Crowborough Triathlon Club

Early Autumn Newsletter October 2025

As I begin to write this next instalment the morning is dark, wet and windy. I guess the beautiful summer mornings have gone. However what an amazing summer the club has had. So many competed and completed events, small and large, short and long and for some, just the act of being in the club and swimming cycling and running for fun.

In July we had all sorts going on. 20th July Iain, our coach, competed in the Eastbourne 70.3. He said -

Eastbourne 70.3 (a training event) a cancelled pier jump replaced by a two lap choppy swim before a wet and windy TT ride finishing over Birling Gap and Beachy Head and finished with a flat seafront 21km….. nice course shame about the weather! 6:06 10th in my age group.

Sounds rather hard work in dreadful weather. Congratulations for completing it!

On 27th Josh went to Leeds for his first Ironman event. Fabulous well done. It is no mean feat to complete an Ironman. In his own words -

Leeds was an amazing event. I was feeling very nervous but had the best training and advice from the coaches and members of the club. Wouldn’t have been able to do it without CTC!

Adam also did an Ironman on the same day in Nottingham. He said -

My swim was 2.4 mile, started at 6 a.m. and I managed that in 1 hour 22 mins. Then the bike was 112 miles and took 7 hours 5 mins. Lastly the run was 1 hour 40.

It was my first full distance and really enjoyed it (afterwards ).

I’m looking to book another for next year so I have something to aim for.

Congratulations Josh and Adam. A great achievement.

31st July. Dean, Andrew and Will. There is no stopping these three triathletes as they headed to France to do the Alpe d'Huez Triathlon. Sarah Smith was already in France for the race. Dean reports that the swim was in the lake. The the cycle was a 15k ride down to the bottom of Alpe d'Huez and then a further 14k up the mountain. The 7k run then took place along the ski fields. An extremely hot day to race, particularly when it didn’t actually start until 2.30 pm. What an experience, what an achievement. Well done all four of you.

7th August. Sarah and John Russell were in Iceland taking part in Rat Race, Coast to Coast. 260 miles including 100k mountain biking then hike/run a marathon. One heck of a race!

She reports:

Not so much a race, but more of a ‘really hard’ expedition, involving 267 miles crossing Iceland from North to South across the mountains by mountain bike, hike/running and pack rafting over 5 days. Camping in tents and trekking huts in the middle of nowhere, we battled the Icelandic head winds and driving rain over tough terrain including lava fields, glaciers, mountain passes and many river crossings on foot and bike, and tackling grade 3 rapids in pack rafts. Each day took around 10-12 hours due to the difficult terrain underfoot, the elevation and the wind. An incredible experience with out of this world scenery, taking in some famous sights including the Skogafoss waterfall. The best part... there was no swimming.

What an experience. Well done both of you.

9th August. Wes was at Eton Dorney to take on a marathon. I would imagine very flat and relentless. Congratulation to him for a PB of 3hrs 28.53. Very speedy!

30th August. (Sorry, this one's about me!)

After a lot of packing and travelling with a bike box (never done that before) I found myself in Istanbul for the European and Asian Tri championships. Where? In Istanbul, where the two continents meet. We did the swim in the iconic Bosporus, then a cycle ride which took us from the Asian side up a steep hill to towards the huge bridge and over into Europe. They had closed half of the massive motorway for the race. Turn around, eventually, and headed back over the bridge and into Asia. The run was a lovely little coast road along the side of the Bosporus. However the cycle turn around had been put in the wrong place and the ride had been 26.5k and not the advertised 20k! My legs did not enjoy the run after the tough cycle, but I did make it back to the finish. 3rd place in AG. Happy with that.

The following weekend of 7th September was the final triathlon race at Southwater, for the relays. The club put up three teams this year, a smaller number than in previous years as many were in training for Ironman events. Nevertheless it was huge fun and under the new format it has made the morning a lot more fun and faster. Also all team members started in fairly quick succession. As soon as the first wave had finished the swim, the second wave was started, and then the third wave. It meant that all the cyclists were off the roads before the Sunday traffic built up.

Teams: 1.Camilla, Sarah Smith, and Wes. 2. Botts, Rosie, and Annie 3. Shay, Gabe and Bex.

On the same day Heather was very busy at Bewl taking on a swim/run event. Here in her own words is her experience.

Swimrun Fun

After injuring my back a few years ago, I have struggled to get my cycling fitness and confidence again, as it feels the riskiest discipline for my flexion intolerant discs. With marathon training earlier in the year, I had something to keep me occupied, but after that I was looking for something fun to do and had heard from Pete (of Crowborough Runners fame) that there was a Swimrun at Bewl, which he did last year and really enjoyed.

I knew a bit about Swimrun, as I had watched videos of crazy people diving off slippery jagged rocks into the nippy Baltic Sea (search for Ötillö – pronounced something like “uh-til-uh”). The sport originated in 2002 with a drunken bet between friends as to who could win a 70km race across 24 islands in the Stockholm archipelago, without boats. Since then, the popularity of this adventure race has been growing.

Instead of opting for Sweden, I signed up for Bewl, as a more gentle introduction to the sport; although I did take on the longer 21km distance round the reservoir – 6km and 10km routes are available.

Prior to the race I did the requisite amount of geeky research into all the extra kit I would need:

1. A Swimrun specific wetsuit: zip up the front, short legs, tougher material, pocket for mandatory kit.

2. Yet another pair of trainers: grip is crucial, as is the ability for water to drain quickly.

3. Paddles: the bigger the better, while being mindful of potential shoulder injuries.

4. Pull buoy: there is a maximum size allowed, with various options as to how to mount this onto your leg or strap it round your waist.

5. I also came across a Kangaroo bra: this was bought on a bit of a whim but turned out to be a game changer – it was very useful for gels.

On the day of the race, I had the usual nerves (would I get there on time?!) and it was a lovely sunny day, so obviously I was fretting about the chances of overheating while running in a wetsuit. As it turns out, one of the many joys of Swimrun is that when you are getting sweaty on the run sections, you know you will be able to throw yourself into some cool water in the near future.

I thought I would probably enjoy the race, but I loved it. I was out in nature, navigating my way through beautiful surroundings, getting more skilled at transitioning between running and swimming and swimming and running, chatting with other competitors, getting cheered along by supportive marshals and finding my flow.

I enjoyed it so much, that when I got a flyer for another “As Keen As Mustard” event – this time at Grafham Water, I signed up! The format of this race was different: the Swimrun Survivor is a battle against the clock with a 2.5km loop that has 2 swim sections and 3 run sections. You have to complete each loop in the time allowed, which gets shorter the more laps you do (from 40 mins down to 16 mins) and the last person left completing a loop in the time available is the winner. It’s a really brilliant race format so I hope I can tempt some of you to join me there (and at other Swimruns!) next year.

Heather

I have included Heather's story in full because it is so inspiring, and shows there are many different types of race to try.

Here endeth my incredible list and reports on the late summer events. There are of course many other adventures that people have had, but not necessarily triathlon based, but nonetheless great fun. There's lots to do out there from sprint tris to Ironman, but also duathlons, aquathlons, swimruns - all sorts to have a go at!

In other news …

Now that the autumn is starting you will all be aware that the Thursday evening cycle rides have stopped, and the turbo session in the Freedom Leisure gym have now started. 6pm for 6.15 start. The Monday swims continue and are a great way to keep fit and prepare for next year.

The date for the Christmas party is now confirmed as Friday 5th December. Keep the date free. More information nearer the time. It is always a really lovely relaxed evening of drinks and dinner, and a chance to catch up with other members of the club.

Thank you for persevering and reading this far !!

Annie

Communications

CTC Mid Summer Newsletter

Tue, 15 Jul 2025 10:45:21 GMT

Crowborough Triathlon Club

Mid-Summer Newsletter July 2025

Hello Everyone,

Collating the news for this edition I was reminded of "Super Saturday" at the Olympics 2012, where so many of our GBR team won medals. So, weekends in June and July, this appeared to have happened to our club when so many members entered events and did really well. I will endeavour to relay the news, and forgive me, or indeed remind me, of anything I have missed.

The swimmers of the club were in action on 2nd June in Rochester for the Kent Trophy. They did incredibly well winning the sprint events, and came 2nd overall.

Congratulations to Donna, Dan and Becci for doing our club proud.

On our Super Saturday 6th June, Leanne entered the super sprint triathlon at Blenheim. It was awful weather on the day, but she made it round with a smile on her face, as always.

I also went to Blenheim the following day, Sunday, and was blessed with lovely dry sunny weather. The race was for a qualifier for next year's European Champs. Success. I did get a Q by my name a few days later. Blenheim this year also hosted the British Champs, and National Champs. I managed to podium in 3rd for both British and National.

Meanwhile Damien did the T100 event at Eastbourne. It was a 2k swim, 80k bike and 18k run finishing in an impressive time of 6 hrs 35 mins. Congratulations Damien on your first ever triathlon!

Malcolm was also busy that weekend sailing his boat in the round the Isle of Wight race. It was going very successfully until the last 20 mins. They could see the finish line, and then the wind dropped. Along with many other boats it took them another 2 hours to cross the finish line.

Sarah Cooper took part in the Eastbourne Aquathlon. A lumpy sea did not deter her. She did a really good time overall and was first in her age group. Well done Sarah.

15th June was the Mid Sussex Triathlon at Burgess Hill. Diana and Andrew went over to take part in this lovely race. Great times both of you, and Andrew came first in his age group.

Also racing that weekend was Christine in the Heathfield 10k. Well done Christine.

Sarah Smith headed south east of Grenoble to take on the immense challenge of GFNY La Vaujany long distance cycle race of 151k with 4100m of climb. In Sarah's own words …

The GFNY Vaujany, Alpe d’Huez was the perfect training ride for the build-up to the (Frankfurt) Ironman. Iconic mountains over approx 100miles and 12,500ft of elevation. I will definitely be back for my third time next year.

Ironman is like childbirth. At the time, you swear it’s the last time but somehow the next day, you’ve forgotten and you’re planning the next one. It was hard and (34 degrees) hot. My worst nightmare of a non-wetsuit swim came true (I didn’t bail or get rescued), but now I’m actually glad it was, so I have overcome that fear! It leaves ‘next time’ to make the changes to try and get down to under 13 hrs. 12hrs something is the next goal !

Huge respect and congratulations to Sarah. Such an achievement.

Dean set off to Pontevedra , North West Spain, wearing his GBR suit, to represent his country and to compete on 21st June in the World Duathlon champs, of 5k run/20k bike/2.5 run. He came 15th overall. Truly amazing. Congratulations.

I flew out to Pontevedra a week after Dean, to compete in the World Sprint Aquathlon event. 1k swim, and a 5k run. It was very hot (31 degree) but a great fun race against some very fast women. One American was wearing a big string of pearls throughout. So I overtook her! I came 5th and was happy considering the conditions on the day.

Kevin squeezed in a sneaky triathlon at Thorpe Park. Not much info since he likes to fly under the radar, but suffice it to say he spent the rest of the day on the Thorpe Park rides !

On 30th June Botts made an extraordinary effort at swimming the channel. Who could even contemplate such a feat. It is the swimming equivalent of climbing Mount Everest. He was going well, and into 9 hours plus when, to his huge disappointment, he was forced to retire. Maybe more news when he has recovered. Or maybe he is writing a book about his Herculean experience.

Ben also attempted this unbelievable challenge, but he too was forced to retire when his shoulder refused to work. Swimming with one arm was a step (stroke?) too far.

But a huge well done to both for even attempting a challenge so big. So much respect from us all in the club.

On 3rd July we had a club cycle in memory of Tom. A very much liked young man who lost his life 2 years ago. The start and finish was at Tom's favourite pub, the Six Bells at Chiddingly. Eleven of us went on a beautiful evening ride around the route established last year. Everyone stayed for supper, sitting outside on a lovely summer's evening. Thanks Dean for leading the ride, and keep us all in order!

After Tom's ride, Dean, Andrew and Will met up for a cycle through France to experience the Tour de France. Said Dean …

"We had a great couple of days in France and watched 2 stages at the finish. Amazing atmosphere."

12th July. 'Low Key Kev' completed another sprint triathlon (in stealth mode) at Eton Dorney coming first in his age group. Wow, well done Kevin!

Lastly on one of the hottest days of the year, Camilla completed the Saucony 10k run around the streets of London. Congratulation on running and surviving in the heat of what must have been well into the 30's.

As you can see there has been so much going on, and as I travel around with my little black book I note people's achievements. I'm sure I have missed a few things, so you must let me know the when and where of your achievements, and forthcoming races.

No info - No newsletter.

What a great club we are in, with some really amazing results - and so much training, racing and participation going on. Good luck to all those who will be competing in the next couple of months. Please let me know what and how you did.

Enjoy the summer and happy training.

Annie Sidgwick

Communications

Crowborough Tri Club

May 2025 Newsletter

Tue, 06 May 2025 18:27:19 GMT

May 2025 Newsletter

Hello All

Its early summer weather has been beautiful. Training is now coming out of the dark months of winter and we can now enjoy the sunshine and lighter evenings. Everyone has certainly been busy and it is only the beginning of May.

Going back to the beginning of the year, in January Sarah Russell completed the coastal trail marathon in Devon. Not an easy one with a 1700m ascent. Huge well done to Sarah.

In March the club put on its inter club mini triathlon with a 200 m swim in the pool, followed by 40 mins on the bike, and then 7 laps of the track. Those who took part were: Will, John, Grant, Phil, Jo, Leanne, Rosie, Damien, Camilla, Gabe, and Annie. All keen to get going with events obviously! It was a great start and Camilla brought a cake to go with the well-earned coffee. Sadly I couldn’t linger to enjoy the cake, but was told how delicious it was! Well done everyone. A good social outing to kick things off.

Sunday April 6th saw Josh competing in the Brighton Marathon with a PB of 3hrs 48. Great result, Josh, congratulations.

On 13th April, George ran the Kent Spring marathon, while Geoff and Andrew ran the half marathon - obviously a marathon rehearsal!

Sunday 19th April. Andrew and Dean competed in Sprint Duathlon at Mallory Park. This was a GB age group qualifier. I believe that they have both qualified (TBC). Congratulations, it’s a tough ask these days.

And then on 27th April, the Big One - The London Marathon! All that training, and pounding the streets paid off for Geoff, Josh, JoJo and Heather. What an experience, huge congratulations.

Sadly, Christine had to defer her place for a year having gone down with a dreadful bug just before the event.

On Monday 5th May, Jane Hand competed in her first triathlon for a few years. She completed it although her mountain bike took her a little longer than on a road bike! Well done Jane. It will be easier next time.

Throughout all this Botts and Ben have been swimming, swimming, swimming, training for the Channel Swim. Last week they were at Pell's Pool in Lewes, to gain their certificate to confirm their place. They both swam for six hours, which you will know is very cool. Pell's staff were absolutely wonderful in supporting these two in their challenge, even working through their lunch break, in the closed period, to look after their swimmers! They both were awarded their completion certificate. Congratulations to both Botts and Ben. Next stop - the Channel.

As you will all know, as a result of my carpet bombing of messages, we held the club AGM on Monday 28th April. There was good turnout of those who could make it. As a result the existing committee is happy to stand again and consists of:

Chairmen: Malcolm Clarke and Dean Taylor

Club Sec: Jo Smith

Treasurer: Geoff Turner

Coach: Iain Watson

Kit: Andrew Joad

Social Sec: Rosie Harris

Communication: Annie Sidgwick

Lots of topics were discussed including events and socials. Keep an eye open.

The first of these will be the Isle of Wight cycle ride on Saturday 31st May. If you are interested please put your name on the calendar. There will be an Isle of Wight WhatsApp group set up soon to inform and exchange information.

Other club dates will include an evening swim at Pell's Pool. TBC.

There will also be an evening cycle in memory of Tom. He was a very special club member who lost his life last year. This will start and finish at 6 Bells at Chiddlingly, followed by supper at the pub. This was Tom's favourite pub.

In the club calendar there are the TESSES (Triathlon England Senior South East Series) events. These consist of:

11th May East Grinstead - Sprint

18th May 7 Oaks - Sprint

8th June Eastbourne - Standard

15th June White Oak (Dartford) - Sprint

22nd June Dartford Bridge - Sprint (closed roads)

7th Sept Southwater - team relays

By entering and racing these, or some of these events, you can earn points for our club and see how we fare in the league table.

7th Sept is the Southwater relay. A wonderful morning out competing against other clubs. If you are interested, please sign up as we have to get the names and teams in early. It is very popular and we don’t want to miss out.

There is a poll on the club WhatsApp under Monday 28th April, and a pin drop at the top of the club WhatsApp page. Just click yes/no.

Andrew continues to look after the kit. He has already got one order completed, but if anyone else would like to order kit please contact Andrew. He needs 10 items before he can put another order in.

Thursday evening bike rides are now happening. No cost, just sign up and turn up. The venue and rider leader will be advertised each week on the club calendar and WhatsApp.

As everyone continues to train, compete and generally being busy, keep up the great work, train well, and see you out and about!

I think that is all for now. Happy training.

Annie

Communications

Club News Flash April 2025

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 08:50:20 GMT

15th April 2025

Club News Flash

Good morning everyone.

Here are a couple of important reminders for your diary.

Club Isle of Wight Cycle Saturday 31st May

This is our third round the island cycle ride. It is a popular and well known route of approximately 70 miles. There is a core of club cyclists who are well used to this distance. This year there will be an option of a shorter distance of approximately 35 miles for those who might not want to go the whole way round.

It would be really good to know numbers for the arrangements and planning. Some of you have already signed up. This event can be found on the club calendar on the web site. It is a great day out and a chance to do something a little different, together.

AGM Monday 28th April

7.30pm at the Boars Head Pub

Another year, another AGM. Please do come and take part in your club AGM. This is not a long evening, with your existing committee members. There is a chance for you to come and join in, have your say, and let us hear your thoughts and ideas, and even perhaps offer to join the committee, or just an offer of help. We would love to hear it all.

It would be great to see you all, new members and long standing ones!

Annie Sidgwick

Communications

PS : No swimming next week - Monday 21st - as it is a bank holiday.

Club Mini Triathlon

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 15:47:48 GMT

Crowborough Tri Club in-house mini triathlon

Sunday 9th March

Hello Everyone

As you may all know there is a club mini triathlon at the leisure centre on Sunday morning. It would be really lovely to see you there, especially any new members who haven’t experienced a triathlon before However, There will be only the three disciplines, i.e. swim, bike, and run, with no transition.

This is how it will work.

Please can you be on poolside between 10.00 to 10.15 am. (We have one lane booked for the club). You will then swim 200 metres (8 lengths). This will be timed, either by you or by Dean on poolside.

After the swim, you can change into dry clothes ready for the cycle which will be in the spin room. Cycle for 40 mins and record your distance.

Then !! Head out on to the track and run 7 laps to complete the three disciplines.

Well done. Completion!

It is then hoped that everyone can stay for a coffee. If you want to bring along cake or some biscuits to share, that would be lovely.

It is meant to be a social occasion but knowing you all, I expect there will be some form of competitiveness involved.

Please WhatsApp me if you intend to come along.

See you on Sunday.

All the Best, Annie

AGM Newsflash 2025

Fri, 28 Feb 2025 15:18:47 GMT

28th February 2025

Not a newsletter!

News Flash

On Monday 28th April after the swim session, we will all be meeting at the Boar's Head Pub for our Annual General Meeting (AGM). It may sound boring, but it is not.

It is a great opportunity for us all to get together, especially for the newer members, to meet and chat over a drink and a bite to eat, and for a short but very efficient and business like AGM.

It would be really good to see as many of you as can make it.

Please put this date in your diary. This is your club and your opportunity to put forward your ideas.

See you there.

Annie Sidgwick

Communications

January 2025 Newsletter

Mon, 20 Jan 2025 12:27:16 GMT

Club Newsletter

January 2025

Hello Everyone.

Happy New Year, although this might be a little late by now as we head into the second half of January.

2024 ended in style with Josh and Sam running the Crowborough Runners 10k on 17th November. Sam earned a very creditable 2nd Place. Well done both of you.

December 7th was the Club Christmas Party, an evening of great fun held at the Huntsman Pub in Eridge. So good to see so many coming to celebrate together. There were many atmospheric photos taken of the evening; some of them might possibly be put on to the website! It is now the custom at this party for Chairmen to present the awards, and of course speeches about the club: what has happened, what people have been up to, and what people have achieved.

The first award was the Jane Bolton cup. This is awarded to the member who has achieved, and given, so much during the year to the club. And not only on a personal level but adding to the club and its activities. This year the cup was awarded to Gabriel Gilarranze, who not only did a 70.3 distance triathlon in Cervia, Italy, but also entered into the trithlon relay race with gusto at Southwater in September. Congratulations Gabriel. A well-deserved recipient. Please don’t stop smiling or showing your enthusiasm, not forgetting the M&Ms. (He brought an enormous pack to the Southwater Relay for our post-race sustenance !)

The second award is a new cup to be awarded by the club to the member who achieved outstanding events during the year. This, naturally, went to Wes Mulder who had set a target of 40 events in his 40th year. Not only were they a significant number, but included extreme runs and an ironman triathlon. By doing all these events he raised a great deal of money for The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. Congratulations to Wes for a most incredible year.

As I write this newsletter, January has been extremely cold with frost and snow. However, this has not stopped Botts and Ben training in open water on early on Saturday mornings at Sea Lanes in Brighton. Dark, freezing and a bit mad. They tell me that it was wonderful, starting in the dark and watching the sun rise. Huge well done to you both.

Behind the scenes you have a committee who work, plan, organise, train, support and hopefully inspire you. A brief outline of the most recent meeting is posted below. It contains all sorts of interesting information. There will be a club try-a-tri (date to be confirmed) . There will be a cycle on the Isle of Wight, which will have two distances - the full/long circuit, and a shorter one for those who want a slightly more gentle/leisurely ride. It would be just wonderful to have lots of members taking part in these events, which are great fun and a really good way to work as a club, and get to know each other.

The club AGM will be held in April and is also a must! Unlike a lot of AGMs our club has a really good social evening, held at the Boar's Head Pub. Although it has to have certain formalities, we treat it informally. It takes place after a Monday evening swim. The Agenda is dealt with swiftly and efficiently. Please come along.

Summary of the last committee meeting

The club is really encouraged with swim numbers – currently exceeding 20 members per session. Everyone seems to be improving and getting a lot from the sessions. Speak to one of the coaches if you have any queries.

Congratulations to Phil Twiddy who is currently undergoing his British Triathlon coach training. Look out for Phil assisting Iain with a couple of swim sessions soon!

If any other members are interested in taking up a coaching qualification please get in touch with either Dean, Iain or Andrew.

Indoor Spin Sessions will be booked until end of April 2025 we will then move to outdoor rides in May.

Running is normally left to the individual member but we would encourage members to drop a message on WhatsApp if they are doing runs where they are happy for others to join – this goes for any bike rides/swimming and of course coffee/cake!

Club finances are discussed at CTCC meetings and the yearly accounts will be disclosed at the AGM.

Club Tri Event – similar to a ‘Try a Tri’ to encourage current and new members to join us and try their first event – short version of a Triathlon – suggest 200m, 15k bike ride and 2.5k run – we are hoping to hold this indoors (apart from the run) to help with the weather and any traffic/road nerves. Club will try and arrange for March 2025 dates tbc.

Isle of Wight annual club ride 31.5.25 – CTCC will be messaging the club to confirm number of participants so we can plan for number of support cars, routes, leaders etc. Entry fee £10 - please express your interest by end of 31.3.25

CTCC will be providing a summary of the outcome of each committee meeting.

Club successfully re affiliated and insured with British Triathlon for another year!

New design for CTC logo agreed – new design to be circulated once proof received.

Next meeting will be the AGM in April, date TBC – encourage members to attend.

That is enough from me now, and I leave it to you to carry on with your winter training and look forward to the longer days, sunshine, and summer events. Happy Training

Annie Sidgwick - Communications

October newsletter 2024

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 13:15:15 GMT

Club Newsletter

October 2025

Hello Everyone

I'm starting with future events - while I still have your attention (!)

FORTHCOMING EVENTS - Keep the dates free

7th December 2024 - Club Christmas Party at the Huntsman, Eridge.

It would be lovely to see as many of you as possible. If you haven’t signed up on the WhatsApp poll just get in touch with Rosie, or Jo-Jo.

Next Year

Club Tri-a-Tri

We are planning a mini tri-a-tri, to be held in the spring. This will give those who have not yet entered a triathlon a taste of events, and also for the more experienced a chance to put all your winter training into practice. The date will be decided early next year.

31st May 2025

Isle of Wight Cycle

Another ride around the Isle of Wight is being planned for 31st May. This time there will be two routes, both will have refreshment stops. The longer one will be right round the island as per this year. The shorter one will be a lot shorter, perhaps detouring across the middle of the island. Iain says this is very hilly, so we will work on that! This plan hopefully will mean that more members who don't regularly ride long distances will feel able to take part. It is a great day out and fun to be with club members.

A couple of mad keen members, have signed up for an Ironman in Cervia, Italy. The weekend has other distances, i.e. half ironman, and a standard distance triathlon. The committee put forward the idea of making this a club weekend event.

The committee are putting their heads together to come up with ideas for other events for club participation next year.

I hope that the above dates and events will be of interest. But if you have any ideas or suggestions please get in touch.

In the meantime club members have been in action again.

Dean raced the Eridge 10 miles on 22nd September and came 4th Overall and 1st Vet. Congratulations Dean, another fast, furious and muddy run!

John Easton and his wife Tracey ran the Royal Park half marathon. In his own words.

After a break from any physical activity for a few months (and in Tracey's case, a few years), in April this year we decided to complete the Couch to 5K challenge. Whilst doing that, Tracey was asked by the Charity she volunteers for (Taylor Made Dreams), if she'd raise money for the charity by running the Royal Parks Half Marathon. Cut a long story short, on Sunday the 13th October, Tracey and I ran, well jogged, it. We were aiming for a 3 hour finish, but actually came in just over 2hrs.50mins which we're really chuffed with. We have raised just over £600 for TMD (thank you to those who donated) so made all the pain worthwhile. You can rest assured though that we'll not be doing a full marathon :)

Don't forget there is the regular coached Monday swim session from 6pm - 7pm

and coached turbo session on Thursday evenings 6.15pm - 7.15pm.

Do sign up on our website !

Finally, a reminder for all. Your committee members are:

Chairmen: Malcolm Clarke and Dean Taylor

Secretary: Jo Smith

Treasurer: Geoff Turner

Social Sec: Rosie Harris

Coach: Iain Watson

Kit: Andrew Joad

Communications: Annie Sidgwick

Happy training,

From Annie

Early Autumn Newsletter

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 13:35:57 GMT

Club Newsletter

Early Autumn September 2024

Hello Everyone,

Just as I thought the summer events had come to an end, there was a flurry of activity.

It was a drizzly and misty morning on 24th August at Weirwood. An intrepid team with Rosie, Diana, Theo, JoJo, Heather, Gabe, Iain, Botts and Dean took part in the swim. Despite the weather it was good fun. Some of us were even invited into the sailing club house for coffee and cake. A charm offensive ?

I raced in the Brighton Triathlon to race on 1st September. Unusually, it was a very hot day indeed, sunny and humid. The sea was flat and calm for the swim, with a slight undercurrent but nothing to worry about. The pebbly beach was matted for the run out of the water to T1. The bike course was 4 laps, and was very busy, almost too crowded with the number of competitors. It is obviously a very popular race. T2 went well. Then the run! What can one say? It was 28 degrees with very little wind and I struggled. Luckily I got my second wind and finished. Thank you Hugh, Sarah and Christine for great support.

7th September saw Ben swimming again, this time in Tenby for a 6km swim in 2 hours. Not much more information here but I'm sure he did well and enjoyed the event, while avoiding the jellyfish. Well done Ben.

The Southwater Relay was next day on the 8th September. It was a huge end of season get together for so many clubs. We were able to put up seven teams of three, consisting of (in no particular order) Christine, Diana, JoJo, Bex, Rosie, Heather, Sharon, Gabe, Grant, Iain, Andrew, Dean, James, Josh, Kevin, Woodsie, Botts, Wes, Malcolm and Ben. Leanne and Hannah and friend Lucy, also made up a team. Becki had a team with two others - breakaway group!

The race this year was condensed due to the dreadful weather forecast, which actually never materialised. The first to swim of each team set off just after 08.00 followed by swimmer two 20 minutes later, and then swimmer three. Which meant there was a flurry of activity for quite a while. The swimmers had to contend with a huge amount of weed, making swimming almost impossible, Sharon even had to be pulled out by a safety boat. Apart from the famous "weed", the event was fast and furious, with lots of shouting and smiling faces. Such a great event, and even for me as a spectator this time it was exciting, although in a perfect world I would have liked to have been taking part.

Well done all those who competed.

That was a busy weekend with club members racing and riding all over the place.

14th September, and Botts was also at a swimming event, this time in the Thames Dock to Dock. In his own words:

"I did the Dock to Dock 10 km, it took 3hrs 40 and I ended up doing 11km with a little distance from not being a straight line and stopping for breaks (in the water).

I obviously did it in the speedo rather than wetsuit!! And I got a lovely medal and mug!"

Well done Botts, what a great swim. I'm sure preparations are going well for the big one next year.

Meanwhile Malcolm headed off to Italy from 18th to 22nd September for the Ziggurat Ride, with approximately 60 other riders. It was a Tour of Tuscany for Action Medical Research, which went from Pisa, through Siena and Florence to Lucca - a distance of 235 miles (376km) with a climb of 16,713 feet (5094m). What an amazing feat of endurance and long days in the saddle. Well done. That must have been tough.

Also that weekend saw the European Championships being held in Vichy, France. We had two GB age groupers from the club competing. Andrew Joad raced in the standard distance with a speedy time of 2hrs 40 mins and came 24th in his age group and 24th out of 57 overall. Our new member, Sarah Smith, was racing in the sprint distance. A very speedy race for Sarah who came in 11th in her AG in 1hr 16mins. One to watch !

Congratulations to you both for great racing and representing our club in the Euro Champs.

And welcome to the club Sarah, you both did us proud.

Gabriel headed out to Italy to race at Cervia in the standard distance. I have persuaded him to write a few words…..

"After joining the Crowborough Tri club earlier this year, I completed my first ever Olympic triathlon in Cervi, Italy on September 22nd in 2hrs and 53 minutes.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sold out event, alongside my cousin who was also participating. Dedicated to his father and accompanied by his family, it was an important milestone to celebrate. There are rumours this feat might be repeated again next year with more club athletes…

Thank you to the Crowborough Tri Club athletes for your encouragement, camaraderie and inspiring stories. I look forward to more memorable times alongside you next year."

I think he enjoyed it, and must be still smiling! Congratulations Gabriel.

He tells me that he is staying on in Italy to take part in a 100km Prosecco ride !

I think, and hope, that I have reported back on all the events of the past few weeks, although sometimes it is difficult to keep up with you all!

Well done one and all for all the events, and also for all those who don’t do so many, but keep training and enjoying the ride!

A reminder that the Thursday evening turbo sessions start again next week on 3rd October. Come and join in and keep the cycle fitness going throughout the winter. Meet up at 6pm for a 6.15 start in the turbo room at the Leisure Centre.

It’s a snip at £7.

Club Newsletter Mid Summer July 2024

Mon, 22 Jul 2024 10:37:13 GMT

Club Newsletter

Mid Summer July 2024

This newsletter is going to be full of events, activities, and what club members have been busy with so far.

We will start with Dean on 15th June racing for GB in a duathlon at Coimbra, Portugal. Well done Dean for a brilliant race and coming in 8th against some stiff competition.

16th June was the Mid Sussex triathlon. This has the reputation of a good, well run and friendly race. Diana, Christine and Kevin took part and by all accounts enjoyed themselves. Christine has written a few words about their day out.

Kevin, Diana and myself did the sprint distance. We liked the pool swim which was eight lanes of zig zag. Considering it was mid June it felt chilly when I set off on the bike. I really enjoyed the 25k cycle route which took us through some lovely country lanes with sign posts to Twineham and Wineham and finished with a straight stretch back to transition. The run route took us out and down a quiet lane where the pub was the turnaround (not stopping) point! That was hard coming back!! Leading up to the finish was long grass, uphill so not a fast finish for me but we did it.
This was a lovely friendly event which attracted all abilities and there was a super sprint also for first timers. I would recommend it.

It was about this time Andrew Joad learnt that he had secured a roll down place to race for GB in the standard distance in Vichy France in September. He had raced in Eastbourne last year, and did extremely well in a tough field. Congratulations Andrew.

Dean was in action again on 23rd June, taking part in the insanely tough and challenging Dragon Race in Wales. Even Dean said that the 295 km cycle up and down the Welsh mountains was almost a step too far. Congratulations on doing so well and indeed for surviving.

John Easton and Grant took on a different type of event in and around the Jurassic Coast, the Dorset 'Race the Sun' event in aid of Action Medical Research. They mountain biked, trekked and kayaked. It sounded a long day but as the photos showed they accomplished the event in style and apparent ease. In Grant's words …

On the 29th of June, John and I took part in an event called Race the Sun - Jurassic Coast. The event could be best described as a Triathlon with a difference. Starting and finishing at Corfe Castle in Dorset we headed west on Mountain Bikes to Kimmeridge Bay. We then put on our trekking shoes and went on a 9-mile hike with the route taking in the glorious Jurassic Coast. Back on the Mountain Bikes, the route took us along the Purbeck ridge before dropping into Studland Bay. We then had a refreshing paddle around the bay on a 2 -person kayak. The final leg was a relatively flat route back to Corfe Castle on the bikes. I say relatively flat, the whole route seemed more up than down!!

We completed the course in 8hours 29mins finishing in 33rd place out of 68 teams that started. Had we known it was a race we probably wouldn’t have stopped halfway round for a Rum and Coke!!

It was John's Birthday on the day which drew the attention of the event organisers, and we were cheered the whole way round which was great.

The event was a fundraiser for Action Medical Research which raised £190,000 in total for the charity. Many thanks to the club members that donated towards John and my contribution to the total, it was very much appreciated.

It was great to receive the help and encouragement from the club, you’re all awesome!

John and Grant – aka the Birthday Team.

On 13th July Dean, Heather, Sarah and Annie went to Eton Dorney to race in the Euro Sprint qualifier. The first hurdle was the M25 which was closed again that weekend for another bridge installation. It was a damp drizzly sort of morning. Dean had a good race, although he said he messed up his swim. Cycle was super fast, but pulled his calf muscle during the run. Hugh saw him limping into the finish, but still smiling. Heather said she enjoyed her first race at Eton, and has been inspired to get back to racing. Sarah pulled all her courage together and after a few very stern words with herself got going and achieved the swim, bike and run. Well done Sarah. I (Annie) had a good swim, and managed 3/4 of the cycle before a puncture stopped my race.

The next day Andrew Joad also raced in the sprint event at Eton Dorney, coming a very creditable 5th in age group in a time of 1hr 13mins.

Also on 14th July our stalwart coach Iain, and Ben took on a full ironman aquathon at the Ironbourne Events in Eastbourne. Having jumped off the pier (a challenge in itself), Iain completed the course in 8hrs 03 min, and Ben, hot on his heels in 8hrs 50 min. Such a demanding event with the last 10 miles of the cycle being brutal hills. Iain reported that he had taken on a bit too much sea water on the swim, and didn’t feel his best on the cycle. Ben completed the swim without a wet suit. Hard core stuff! Huge congratulations to both of you.

Nearly there with the events!!

'Swim the Lake' was an event at Ardingly reservoir on 17th July, run by Paul Hedger of Hedgehog Tri who organised what might be his last event before retiring. A goodly gang of us turned up to take part in what was a great evening's entertainment, comprising an aquathon and a 750m, 1500m and a 3000m swim.

Christine did the aquathon - a 750m swim followed by a very hilly 5k run. Very well done Christine on a sunny and hot evening.

Botts and Kevin accomplished the 3000m swim. Heather, JoJo, Rosie, Theo and I swam the 1500m. I was overtaken by JoJo on the last few hundred yards who had 'found her legs' and shot past me, and Sharon swam the 750. I am sure she enjoyed herself but I don’t think she was sure. It was the most wonderful sunny, warm evening, with so many people entering. It seemed that the Reservoir was only just big enough for so many swimmers.

The last event before finishing this letter is from Heather. Wow Heather, what a race! She went back to Eton Dorney for a half ironman 'Castle to Coast'. Swimming at Eton, then cycling down to Brighton, then ran a half marathon. What a wonderful achievement after a couple of years with a back problem. She was due to take part with her sister Bex for company, but she was also suffering with a back problem so could not take part. Congratulations Heather for completing a very challenging event. I gather that you had company on part of the run when JoJo popped up to join you for a little while. That's what friends are for!

This is, so far, a busy summer schedule, and not finished yet. I am always in danger of missing events which come fast and furiously during the summer with club members always finding unusual challenges to take on, so please keep me informed. If you want to, that is!

Our committee is working on some social events for your delectation later on in the season. Watch this space.

What incredible members we have, taking on all these events, and reaching such heights. I am convinced that our relaxed atmosphere and inclusivity and friendship goes a long way to making our club so successful in so many ways.

Keep training, racing and achieving.

Good luck all

Annie - Communications

Newsletter June 2024 Part 2

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 13:30:14 GMT

Newsletter June 2024 - Part 2 (Addendum)

You probably spotted my error - but how on earth did I forget two of the more important triathlons of the season so far? Oh well …

Tonbridge triathlon on early May Bank Holiday Monday was one of the wettest events I have ever been to. But it didn’t stop an intrepid team of Theo, Kevin and Me from doing it. Theo plucked up courage to complete her first triathlon for a long time (she had done Bewl a few years ago). This was a test of endurance with stair-rod rain all day, and after a small mishap in the run she finished what was certainly a baptism of rain. Well done to Kevin who completed the whole event without any problems. I just remember being soaked, and noticing I had puddles in my cycle shoes whilst out on the ride. It was very cold. My run was a mission and not very well executed. But we all finished, and survive to race another day.

East Grinstead Tri in mid May is part of the Triathlon England South East (TESE) Region Club Senior Series for 2024.

It was a beautiful, sunny and warm start. A great enthusiastic team from the club consisted of JoJo, Diana, Christine, and Botts. Sarah took on the swim/bike event. There were some great times, great racing and great smiles all round.

Sarah's swim/bike race went well, and apart from some deer and rabbits sharing the bike route and causing some alarm, everything was good.

Leanne (Dean's wife) and her friend Hannah also did their first race in the Tri-a-Tri. They did so well, and seemed to really enjoy it. Maybe we will see more of these two next year.

Annie

Communications

Newsletter June 2024

Mon, 10 Jun 2024 16:03:06 GMT

Club Newsletter

June 2024

It seems a while since I last put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and so much has happened. Our wonderful club has so many active, talented, able and busy members. It is hard to keep up at times. This newsletter (blog) will have to start way back in March, when Wes and Botts took part in an event at Brands Hatch. In his own words:

Wes and I rode the Kentish Killer the weekend after the Hell of the Ashdown - it was another 100km route with 1855m of elevation. We enjoyed this much more than the Ashdown due to 3 things - firstly the temperature was up to about 6 degrees rather than the 1C the weekend before!! The route also had more “flow” and took us though some local haunts with a feed in Groombridge. But the best part was starting and finishing on the smooth fast tarmac of the Brand Hatch race track. Great event that I would whole heartedly recommend. Big thanks to Wes for waiting for me on a couple of climbs - he really is an animal!!

In March Wes was well into his 40/40 events, and nearing the end of his mammoth challenge. He raced the Lydd half marathon on 10th March. Then his last challenge, the London marathon on 21st April. He finished in a hugely impressive 4hrs 13.

Geoff also ran the London marathon and again sped to the finish in an incredible 3hrs 20. What speed.

Dean was in action again racing a qualifier duathlon, at Mallory Park in Leicestershire.

In his own words:

It was a 5k run (18 minutes 20 seconds) 21k bike (34 minutes) and finally a 2.5k run in (9 minutes 20 seconds). I was happy with the run, but a bit off on the bike and finished 4th at 102%.

Congratulations on a fantastic result.

On 26th May, Becci raced at Bewl Water. This was her first full triathlon (doesn't last year at Southwater count?). She must have had a great time, judging by the big smiles in the photos. Well done Becci, and congratulations. What next?

Also on 26th May I raced at Barry Island. It was a sprint qualifier for Euro champs 2025. As in previous years the conditions were tough, with weather (and sea temperature) turning very cold overnight. There was a strong current, and the start was delayed to reduce the swim from 750m to 350m. In fact the swim ended up at 600m. Hey ho, it was a good race, with some tough opposition. I managed to secure 3rd place in 115%, and so qualified for Istanbul 2025.

Now! The big club event of the year. The Round the Isle of Wight bike ride. Unlike last year's dreadful conditions we were blessed with great weather. Sunshine and just a light breeze along the Military Road. We split into two groups - The Fasties (74 miles) and Annie's - renamed by Malcolm "the Specials" - (56 miles).

All fourteen of us stayed together, mostly, for the first two stops, then the Fasties (Iain's group) set off on a longer route back to the Ferry Port. We all managed to get back in time for the evening ferry, even if the Specials got there first!

Hugh did an incredible job of driving the support car, with all the bags, spares, tools, food, water and some emotional support. What a great day out; easier for some, harder for others, but smiles all round on the ferry back. You will no doubt have seen some of the many photos posted on the club WhatsApp group.

The participants in this adventure were Malcolm, Iain, Andrew, Dean, Botts, Grant, Ben, Chris, Wes, Diana, Christine, JoJo, Heather and Annie.

Where to next year?

I must end this newsletter by congratulating Wes on his amazing achievements of 40 challenging events in this his 40th year, raising funds for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. He has a JustGiving page which I believe is still active.

And finally congratulations to all those who have raced so far this year, and all those who swim, bike and run for pleasure, all with great results. Let's keep it going.

Spring Newsletter April 2024

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 10:19:10 GMT

SPRING NEWSLETTER APRIL 2024

Hello Everyone.

I hope you are all well, although I know a few of us have succumbed to the cough and colds. However, I am assured that good weather, possibly a heatwave, will soon be with us. Failing that I will start planting rice in my very wet garden.

Club Annual General Meeting

As you know we had the club AGM after swimming on March 25th. It was great to see everyone who could make it.

A couple of immediate items of note are that Heather, our stalwart Club Secretary is stepping down. She has done so well and so professionally over the last few years, keeping everything running smoothly. Thank you Heather for all your hard work. JoJo has now agreed to take over the role, having already taken on the mammoth job of the website.

On that subject, we have a young techie couple who are helping to get our club website more user friendly, particularly for those who are browsing and looking for a club. Hopefully, it will look more professional, and be easier to use. So bear with us/them while this is in progress, there may be a few glitches while it is perfected! Jo has also relaunched the club Facebook page. Please have a look, and "like" it, thereby raising our profile.

As a result of the AGM your committee remains very similar, and we now give a big welcome to Rosie who has agreed to step up. Thank you.

Chairmen (Joint) Malcolm and Dean

Club Secretary JoJo

Treasurer Geoff

Coach Iain

Social Secretary Rosie

Communications Annie

I will post the minutes of the AGM for all to see when it has been approved.

Achievements

Wes continues his valiant effort to complete 40 events in his 40th year. He's almost there. His latest achievement is Brighton Marathon in an excellent time of 3:57. One more challenge which I believe is the London Marathon, which is where he started a year ago.

George also ran the Brighton marathon in an impressive time of 3:48. Congratulations both of you, particularly as the weather wasn’t kind and high winds made the going very tough.

Forthcoming Events

The Triathlon world is waking up and events are appearing in the diary. The TESE (Triathlon England South East) events are:

28th April Sevenoaks Sprint

12th May East Grinstead Sprint

9th June Dartford and White Oak Sprint

16th June Eastbourne Standard (an Age Group qualifier)

1st Sept Brighton & Hove Sprint

8th Sept Southwater Mixed Team Relays

These are great events, and earn points for the club!

Please let me or Heather know If you are at all interested in the Southwater Relays, as we need to register our teams very soon.

Other local races to look at are Tonbridge on 6th May, and Mid Sussex (Burgess Hill) on 16th June.

Cycling Event

Isle of Wight on 1st June.

It is a club day out! A fun, quote Iain, "Bimble" around the isle of Wight. The more the merrier. Further details nearer the time.

Swimming

Monday night swimming sessions continue throughout the year. Open water swim are now beginning to appear, with Pell's Pool in Lewes open on Sat 13th. Weir Wood Reservoir has started on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings. Haysden near Tonbridge is another lovely place to swim on Friday evenings.

I leave you with these choices and hope that you will be inspired to come along to some of them! Good luck to all.

Annie

Newsletter March 2024

Fri, 05 Apr 2024 09:23:59 GMT

Club Newsletter

SAVE THE DATE !

Monday 25th March 7.30 At the Boars Head Pub.

Our Club AGM.

This is not a stiff and starchy meeting, more of a social gathering over a drink and something to eat, and to hear what we have achieved in the past year, and how we hope to continue. There will be, of course, the AGM structure. It is also an opportunity for meeting club members who you may not otherwise get a chance to see.

It would be wonderful to see as many of you as can make it.

SAVE THE DATE #2 !

1st June. Cycle the Isle of Wight.

It's a great day out. Although the weather last year was appalling, this year is going to be wonderful (isn't it!). Another great opportunity to take part in a club event, and bond with your club mates. More information nearer the time.

Club members have already been in action with races, running and cycling.

I mention below some of the achievements already obtained, and this is only the start.

I apologise for not keeping up with the times and details - all been too quick for me this year. Anyway, here we go.

George started us off with the Tunbridge Wells half marathon with a great time.

Botts, Wes, Will, and Dean attacked the 'Hell of Ashdown' on 25th Jan. It is a cycle over 100km with 10 very challenging hills. This, in anyone's world, is a serious ride.

If that wasn’t enough Botts and Wes cycled the 'Kentish Killer' - another tough sportive of 100km starting and finishing at Brands Hatch.

I think the clue is in the title!

Jo and Heather competed in the Brighton Half Marathon, with speedy times. Looking very fresh in the post-race photos.

Geoff ran the Paddock Wood half marathon, a fantastic race, and came 2nd (silver) in his age group.

Theo ran the 'Steyning Stinger' half marathon. Again the title says it all. Well done Theo.

Fantastic results all round, and well done everyone for just getting out there in what has been a very wet and miserable couple of months.

I hope I haven’t missed any events.

Best Wishes

Annie

Newsletter January 2024

Fri, 05 Apr 2024 09:22:35 GMT

Newsletter No. 6

Winter News

This is the most challenging time of year to be training. It is difficult to even imagine what it will be like swimming, running and cycling outside and enjoying the warmer weather.

Despite that, I have no doubt that you are all battling with the weather and succeeding.

Not long until spring !

First, here is a message from our esteemed coach Iain, about the aims and training focus in the swim.

Swim Focus 2024

January to March

Welcome to the start of another year of coached swim sessions, now we have set some benchmark times for 400m and 200m this has given some of you a guide CSS time. Don’t worry if you haven’t set these times yet we can catch up in the next week or two.

Our focus for the next few months will be to make you more efficient with each stroke, which should help to improve your performance…… less strokes per length, move further with each stroke eventually reducing the time per 100m.

The following weeks will be a mixture of drills and swim sets designed to help with the overall stroke performance. There will be opportunities to put the revised technique into some conditioning practice too. Then in a few months' time we will be repeating the timed swims.

Any questions please feel free to ask!

Iain

Head Coach

In the meantime the Committee have met and come up with some great ideas for the club for this coming year.

March 25th - AGM

Meet at the Boar's Head Pub at 7.30 after swimming.

Please do come and join in. It is a very relaxed meeting and it would be lovely to see as many of you as possible. Your club. Your ideas.

Other dates for your diaries.

April - Date: tba. A possible wine tasting evening at Alteus in Crowborough.

June - Sat 1st. Cycle round the Isle of Wight! The weather has got to be better than last year, and it will be huge fun. There will be a support car for gear/food/clothes and for any cyclist who just wants a rest for a few miles! The date gives us plenty of time to train and get our mileage up.

June - Thurs 13th. There is to be a memorial ride for Tom. The ride will start and end at the Six Bells Pub in Chiddlingly.

September - Sun 8th. Southwater Relay. A riotous event. Last year we had seven teams. More information later in the year, but do keep the date free. Not to be missed.

During the summer there is a Triathlon England South East Senior Series (TESESS)

which consist of the events below. East race undertaken by club members scores points for the club.

28th April Seven Oaks

12th May East Grinstead

9th June Dartford and White Oak

1st Sept Brighton and Hove

8th Sept Southwater

In the meantime we keep on with the Monday evening swims, and the Thursday evening turbo sessions. Good to see so many people again.

The park runs are always good to do all the year round. The venues are listed on the club calendar for the first Saturday of each month.

Best Wishes

Annie

Communications

Great Read in Crowborough Magazine

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 18:59:21 GMT

Click the link below to see the great feature we had in the Crowborough Magazine.

https://crowborough-magazine.co.uk/crowborough-tri-club/

Thanks Jo

PIPPINGFORD PARK XTRIATHLON

Mon, 19 Jul 2021 18:21:12 GMT

By: Rob Lawrence

I always feel a pinch of excitement receiving emails from event organisers in the week running up to an event; ‘this is your start time’, ‘be here for the race briefing’, ‘nuances of transitions we need to let you know about’. And so it was, an innocuous email from Trail X late on Friday was followed by a flutter of excitement for the next day’s event.

Fresh from scouting the course, which was wild, true the event’s advertised nature, I was struggling with a footwear dilemma. Twice on the swim, transitioning between lakes, still clad in wet suits we would climb from one lake, dash across the forest floor and jump into the next lake before exiting the third lake and climbing 300m uphill crossing more heather, rocks and forest into T1. What to wear on my feet? Sacrificial neoprene socks, trainers that would feel like dragging a parachute while swimming or simply tough it out with bare feet. I had chosen to go with option three.

Swim Cancelled. The email’s subject turned my flutter into a swirl of thoughts. E-Coli had been discovered in the lake, so the swim leg was to be replaced with a 2km run, turning the event into a classic duathlon format. The swim footwear dilemma was solved, but with a touch of disappointment.

The MOD has used Pippingford Park, troops frequently dipping into the murky, lily pad covered lakes in the name of training, for years. With this came frequent water testing, but never the discovery of E-Coli. Sharing the news must have been a nervous moment for the race organisers, but speaking on behalf of those I chatted to, our initial disappointment was soon replaced by thankfulness that someone was overseeing our welfare. The testing laboratory believed the warm weather earlier in the year followed by recent heavy rain caused something containing E-Coli to be washed into the river that feeds the lakes. Something else to blame on Global warming? I’ll try harder with my carbon footprint.

The relaxation of social distancing rules allowed us to start in waves of ten, separated by 30 seconds. I adopted the start line stance, index finger posed on the start button, chip timing ankle well back from the start line, perfectly copied by nine others that would soon join me gasping for air on the opening uphill, long meadow grass, 100 metre field dash. We hit the top of the field, turned left onto a bridle way, gently downhill, gently back up then into the woods for what became the most enjoyable part of the whole race. Not fatigued enough to be in any pain the tightly packed wood presented a single, windy, root-infested downhill track that I flowed down, gliding from bump to root, the sense of speed augmented by the nearby trees whizzing past me. To an observer I’m sure I looked more pedestrian than racehorse, but to me, for a few moments, I felt gazelle-like. Then it was over, and the reality of the task ahead started to sink in. Heading back into for T1 lungs gasping and thighs burning a little more than sensible pacing would suggest they should be, I was a little nervous I’d overcooked things.

52 seconds later I’m out on the bike, shoes still undone, but peddling. 500 meters go by; the shoes are still undone. 1km in, no change with the shoes. I’ve made an error. Attempting to save time in T1 I thought I’d tighten my shoes on the bike. But MTBing is not like road biking where smooth tarmac allows you to reach down and tighten your shoes. My legs were working overtime to hold my feet in the loose shoes, lactic was building, others were passing me. Opportunities to reach down and tighten my shoes weren’t presenting themselves, then I slipped and ended up in a muddy heap. An inglorious start to the MTB leg, but an opportunity to sort my shoes and try to put things right. I’d lost a lot of time and for the remaining 20km it didn’t get much better. I fell off a further five times from a mixture of bad overtaking decisions and poor MTB handling. This was hard work. There were points where I felt dejected with the whole event. The towel, however, was not about to be thrown into the ring.

Flustered from exhaustion T2 felt like it took a long time to come round but come round it did and with equal measures of fluster I transitioned into running gear. Not a lot could go wrong now, it was just man and trainer versus a cross country route. Leg drive gone, glutes packed up for the day, it wasn’t the most elegant run, but it too came to an end at the finishing banner. There was a little pleasure, but I was too consumed by all the things I’d done wrong in the transitions, on the MTB leg and how I should turn them into lessons to enjoy the moment.

As the lessons crystallised, I became happier with my performance. I’d learnt a lot, about my kit and myself, and most of it would be transferable to ‘normal’ road races. The search for the perfect MTB tri shoe has started – it needs loops on the heels and Velcro fasteners, not Boa dials. I’ll be back next year, more skilful on the bike, fitter and calmer and wiser in transition.

Thank you Trail X Triathlon, a wonderful day!

Eastbourne Tri 2021

Sat, 10 Jul 2021 18:29:54 GMT

By: Annie Sidgewick –

A beautiful still gentle sunny morning.

Having registered the day before I go straight onto transition on Western Lawns to rack my bike and set up my race gear. I spend some time working out the swim in, bike out etc. I met up with Will who was looking very calm, organised and was enjoying the surroundings!

Organisers had worked hard to make social distancing possible, and for transition to work smoothly.

Everyone started gathering down by the beach, with an air of anticipation, and trying to abide by the rules wearing face masks!! The start was delayed by 15 mins due to thick fog/mist on top of Beachy Head. Then we were off; running down the beach and across the timing mat into the sea. No time to worry about ice cream head, just ploughed straight in! Sighting was a bit tricky due to full sun shining straight at us. We had been given detailed instructions for the swim directions with the strong current. At last I rounded the final buoy and headed for the finish arch.

Out onto the beach and ran up, up, up to transition on Western Lawns.

Out on the bike and headed up and up around the zig zag bends to Beachy Heads. Legs screaming! Out of the sunshine and onto the misty cool roads and fast down to Birling Gap. Dead turn and back up the long drag to Beachy Head and fast down into Eastbourne.

Out on the run. Out and back twice along the promenades. Sun now getting quite hot but lots of people shouting encouragement; some beach goers looking rather bemused at to what was going on. Passed the big cafe and round the corner and up (of course) to the finish. The final 50m up the blue carpet is always thrilling with the commentator shouting your name and the crowd cheering.

V hot and dehydrated. Hugh, Will and Diana there to meet me.

Will had had a good race and still looked very calm and collected. Well done Will. A tough race, but satisfying after the event!

Editors Note: Congratulations to Annie who came 2nd in her age group & subsequently discovered her efforts were sufficient to qualify her for the GB Age Group (70-74) Team at the World Championships 2022, truly inspirational!

Pool Swimming from 17th May

Thu, 06 May 2021 18:31:03 GMT

We are all looking forward to getting together for coached swim sessions in the pool every Monday at 18:20 from 17th May 21. Join us for a taster session before you sign up for membership.

We're back!!

Fri, 02 Apr 2021 10:59:55 GMT

Now that lockdown restrictions have been eased a little we took the opportunity for the first group ride of the year.

It made a nice change to meet up and ride with others, looking forward to more face to face club events in 2021....

Ironman Copenhagen 2019

Sat, 24 Aug 2019 09:51:57 GMT

Thanks to all those that followed and supported my second Ironman, I truly would not have achieved this without the club's support and look forward to being able to offer some advice to those that make the same journey - I started in lane 1 swimming only breaststroke and not owning a bike 3 years ago!

Some might also recognise Frank O'Brien who originally desinged the club logo and is still going strong on the bike and completed his first Ironman!

Ringmer Triathlon Results

Sat, 24 Aug 2019 09:42:06 GMT

Another busy weekend last week with some great results to celebrate;

Ringmer Triathlon Standard distance;

Winner - Heather Stevens
Second - Sally McCleverty
Third - Bex Stevens

First in AG - Kevin Battell

Ringmer Triathlon Sprint distance;

Winner - James Cox
Second (and First in AG) - Danny Turnock

Second in AG - Malcolm Clarke

Third in AG - Sharon Wheeler

Ringmer Triathlon Super Sprint;

Third (and First in AG) - Jo Smith

Ringmer Duathlon;

Third (and First in AG) - Sarah Cooper

Well done to all who competed and represented the club so well!

Bewl Tri Club Championships

Sat, 10 Aug 2019 18:48:13 GMT

Congratulations to all that competed at Bewl Triathlon last weekend. This event was chosen as the Club Championship and saw a great turnout with many firsts to list.

First of all, our Champions are Roger Moore and Sally McCleverty - more details on how this was calculated below.

Theo took part in her first triathlon and finished in 1:47:20, a great achievement and I'm sure it will be the first of many.

Both Annie and Sally came 1st in their Age Group so a great achievement and Roger came 11th overall and a very close 2nd in his Age Group, just 11 seconds behind the winner!

Heather was the only competitor in the club that took on the standard distance and came a very impressive 10th overall - well done all!

The results for the Club Championship are as follows;

	Bewl Tri	Time	AG %	Athlete 25 %	Total
1st	Roger	1.11.24	99.7	118.2	217.9
2nd	Andrew	1.22.57	99.3	101.7	201
3rd	Danny	1.20.32	86.7	104.8	191.5
	Kevin	1.28.16	92.9	95.4	188.3

1st	Sally	1.34.12	100	93.1	193.1
2nd	Sue	1.32.18	83.8	95.3	179.1
3rd	Bex	1.32.43	77	94.8	171.8
	Annie	2.00.35	100	63.2	163.2
	Theo	1.47.20	59.2	78.3	137.5
	Diana	1.51.48	59.2	73.2	132.4

	Heather	2.48.11	92	100	192

Just to explain they are calculated as follows:

1. AG% is the Athlete's time as a % relative to the fastest finisher in their Age Group (i.e. 1st in Age Group = 100%)
2. Athlete 25% is the Athlete’s time as a % relative to the time of the athlete finishing at 25% of the field in the gender category (i.e. 213 males * 0.25 = 53 place) So if you were better than 53rd you score more than 100%, worse you score less.
3. These two scores are added together to give an overall score to determine the placings.

Transition Training

Sun, 05 May 2019 18:11:25 GMT

After the recent strong performance in the Uckfield Triathlon members met at the Kings Centre in East Grinstead today for a recce of the bike course along with an hour of transition training. The bikes were racked and Rob demonstrated how to layout your clothing and accessories ready for the bike, we discussed the basic rules and then went through some practical drills. Great fun and some essential lessons learned for all!

Good luck for the East Grinstead entrants!

The great open road!

Fri, 19 Apr 2019 12:04:00 GMT

Good Friday just got better as we met early for the first club ride of the season, a lovely route from Crowborough out to Uckfield where we rode the bike course of the upcoming Uckfield Triathlon.

Those slightly more efficient cyclists chose 3 loops whilst others took the more leisurely option of just 2 before meeting back at the Leisure Centre and then heading back to Crowborough (totalling 28 miles with 2 loops).

The garden of the Crowborugh Cross was so inviting by the time we got back we could not resist the added option of breakfast in the sun!

Happy Easter

Ironman Uk 2018 (Bolton) - 15th July

Fri, 27 Jul 2018 17:48:14 GMT

By Alex Cole

I will start with one of the questions I was asked most in the lead up to the event...had I done a half Ironman before? The answer is no and I don’t think I would have learned anything more than I had done from standard distance Triathlons so don’t let that put you off! The basics are the same, you just need to train with longer distances.

One of the hardest parts is signing up, finding a realistic time frame and of course, a glamorous location!

We travelled up to the slightly more glamorous Harrogate where my Aunty lives for 5 days of relaxing before heading across to a Bolton hotel. I thoroughly recommend this bit as I turned up to the start line the most relaxed I have been at an event.

The registration, bike racking and bag drops were seamless, a really well organised event and you realise that you are not the only “Ironman virgin”, in fact over half the pack were aiming to “become one”.

On the Saturday after racking the bike we drove away from T1 and followed the bike route loop to discover the more glamorous parts of Bolton...trust me! The roads led up to the moorlands surrounded by stone walls and scattered with sheep and cattle and I soon discovered that the elevation was more intimidating on the route map than in real life, nothing that really dwarfed any of our regular training spots on the forest.

The next challenge was getting an early night and some sleep but I did ok with this, the alarms went off at 2:30am and the hotel were serving breakfast from 3am to cater for the many athletes staying there so I ate far more than I normally would on a race day before heading to Pennington Flash nice and early for the 6am start. Tip - get there early, use the toilet facilities before the queues start!

The swim was a rolling start at 6am and you lined up based on your predicted times, again be ambitious with this as the last thing you need is to get caught up in traffic so i put myself in between the 1:10 and 1:20 posts. The water was clear and 23 degrees at 6am but still wetsuit compulsory and I kept myself relaxed and swam really well, a few whacks in the goggles and it got busy at the buoys and the Aussie-exit before jumping back in for the second 1900m loop.

I came out of the water after 1 hr 21 mins before taking a bit of extra time to make sure my feet were dry and I had fuelled up on some flapjack before heading out on the bike. I was buzzing by this point to be honest, the sun had come up, the crowds were lined up from the swim exit and for the first couple of miles on the bike already and I started to get the feeling that I was going to do this…

I felt good on the bike, I knew this was the longest discipline and probably my least strong so I went hard, I always seem to find a bit extra on race day and before I knew it I had taken on two of the big hills, shared high 5’s with some fancy-dressed crowds and was enjoying the inevitable descents.

The 30 mile marker was a bit of a burst to the bubble as it meant two-thirds of the shortened course remained but with my head down I carried on and was soon at the start of the second loop and by then there were no surprises, just slightly more tired legs!

As the day went on the crowds got bigger and louder despite the course being so long, there must have been tens of thousands of people out supporting in the 25 degree heat.

I didn’t really have any concept of times but I felt that I had given everything I could to the hills of Bolton as I pulled in to T2, racked my bike and ran in to change footwear, a quick refuel and out on to the hot streets for 26.2 miles over 4 laps. In my mind this was a good thing as it broke the run down in to smaller chunks but after coming to the first hill in the park, it dawned on me that it meant we had to do that 4 times. There was a long stretch up Chorley Road which was covered in crowds and feed stations and you could see athletes heading back looking more tired than you which is reassuring but also a little disconcerting as I was yet to reach that point!

I got chatting to fellow first timers as our runs became slower and the can do attitude got stronger, each lap you flirt with the finish line and hear those epic words being spoken as many crossed it. This was the first sign of a clock too so I could see that my first lap was reasonable, second slightly slower but I could work out that I could afford to slow down a bit more and still achieve a good time so I kept digging in, starting to walk to the feed stations to get more fuel in the peak heat.

I got to stop and chat to my support crew too, the lovely Sarah who had supported me throughout my journey, putting up with the training hours, the early nights, the negative moods and turning them into positives and without her I would never have got to this point so I had to finish for me but I owed so much of it to her too.

And here we go, the magic carpet was just around the corner, spectators could count my wrist bands and see I was on the last straight and their cheers were louder and that inner reserve tank seemed to top me up for the final 800m, every hair stood up on my body and

I heard the announcer say those words “Alex you are an Ironman”. An amazing personal achievement and I am so delighted but I honestly couldn’t have done it without the support of the club, my family and of course back to Sarah..one last surprise I had lined up was a proposal and I’m pleased to say she said yes! To getting in two years time married and to me doing another Ironman next year, result!

Who fancies it?

New Forest 1/2 IronMan - Aug 17

Mon, 04 Sep 2017 08:01:52 GMT

By Alan Pople

Waking up in the New Forest is normally a very pleasant experience, but this morning its still dark ( its only 4.30 am ) and I’m feeling more than a bit nervous. Today is the New Forest Half Ironman and we are in our campervan parked at a camp site a couple of miles down the road from Moyles School where its due to start at 7.00 am. After boiling our kettle for the morning cuppa our van chooses this moment to run out of gas , so the promised cooked breakfast will have to wait ( lets hope this isn’t a bad omen ). The camp site seems extremely quiet as we drive slowly out over a cattle grid and head for the venue. As we drive into the school car park there is a real buzz about the place. Bikes are being unloaded ,competitors nervously rearrange their kit and apply numerous numbers to helmets bikes and bags. The Swim start is a kilometre down the road at Ellingham lake which is normally used for water skiing. There are rumours of traffic chaos on the roads ( even at this time in the morning ) and the start may be delayed. Sue and I walk down to the lake anyway and try to get to grips with the plan of the day. Two laps of the lake ( 1.9k ), three laps of the bike course (90K ), and two laps of the run on compacted gravel paths ( 21K ). This does seem a lot further than my normal Sprint Tri / Park Runs, but there is no going back now..

After a briefing ( the mike fails and the man in-charge resorts to shouting ), the 230 half Ironmaners don our yellow swim hats and head into the water. There is a lot of nervous chatter as we tread water waiting for the start gun. The gun goes and the usual melee starts , all trying to find some space and rhythm . There is one guy in a random blue hat that I keep pace with and start to feel relatively comfortable on the first lap. The swimmers spread out and despite a little pond weed all seems well. At a buoy about three quarters of the way round there is some shouting going on between the safety boat and a kayaker. Cant work out what that’s about but no one seems to be in trouble so we carry on. A group of fast white hatted Sprint Triathletes start to over take me and I seem to be heading for the get out point ( not where I want to be ). I stop for a second to take stock and realise that I’m getting separated from my yellow hatted competitors who are starting lap two. I have to do a quick swim across the white hats to get back on course. I catch up with the yellow hats, and I’m back on track. I finish lap two and head for the get out point feeling a little cramp in my right leg . As I get out Sue explains that about a third of the swimmers were led round the wrong buoy by the safety boat ( hence the shouting ) causing chaos with the faster swimmers (but I did the full 1.9K.. phew ).

There’s a quick “shoe transition” by the lake where we shed wetsuits and don shoes to run the 1 K back to the school to pick up the bike. Transition is fairly smooth and I start lap one of the bike route. We had cycled a lap of the bike course the day before so it seemed familiar. Now for some reason although the animals have hundreds of acres to roam around in on the Forest, a lot of them seem to want to stand around in the roads. This is not ideal when you are trying to compete in your first Half Iron man. Horses seem to be totally oblivious to cars whizzing past but seem to take exception to the humble cyclist. At one point as a cyclist starts to pass me, a horse grazing on the verge takes fright and leaps into the middle of the road ( no road sense ). I shout whoa, the other cyclist shouts F…. and we both take avoiding action. The other cyclist veers right, I go left and luckily Neddy stays where he is, and all is well.

Later on the lap we slow down for a group of cows who are taking their morning stroll down the road ! Lap one is nearly finished ( Jacob’s lap ). In my head I’ve decided to do a bike or run lap for each grandson and the last lap for Sue). Quicker than expected I see Sue back at the School , exchange a few words and head out on Sammy’s lap. On this lap I pass a guy dresses as Spiderman waving two cow bells as cyclists go by ( yes really ! ) I try to get into a bit of a rhythm and make as much use of by Aero bars as I can. I pass a sign, “ Wine. Dine and Relax “ outside a restaurant.. that sounds like a much better idea ! On a steep down hill stretch I over take two donkeys ! Checking my speedo each lap seems to be 20 miles ,which is a bit more than the promised mileage by my calculations !

I start lap 3 ( Caleb’s lap ). Things start to get tough. For some reason the hills have got steeper , the number of fellow cyclists have got fewer and the padding on my shorts seems to have got thinner . Spiderman is still there doing his stuff ( Bless him). That cramp is starting to come back as well ! I get stuck behind a caravan , which is stuck behind a slow moving group of cows, and I feel that I too am starting to run out of gas. I hit a pot hole that I didn’t see and my bike gives an ominous groan. If my chain broke would I been frustrated or relieved… not sure . Come on, cant give up on Caleb’s lap. At last I see Sue back at the school and she passes me some extra drink with a Tab for the cramp and I start the run ( Harry’s lap ).

Both legs are cramping now and my hope of not having to walk soon fades I’m afraid as I encounter the first few hills. An unusual shape route means that I’m passing lots of other competitors on “out and back” routes . I’m pleased to see that I’m not the only one suffering and many others are having to resort to a walk / run policy. The cramp is bad now but a coach helps me by showing me some stretches which help. Sue’s there at a water station which helps enormously. On the last part of the Run there are only a few competitors left, and I know Im right at the back ( but I cant give up on Sue’s lap). Those of us at the back give each other some encouragement with a thumbs up, or a “well done- keep going “ as we pass each other. Sue runs the last 2 and a half Km back from the water station with me to the finish line, and Ive made it! Out of 230 starters, 25 did not finish, and only 4 finished after me ….but I was a STARTER and a FINISHER even if my time of 8.05 hrs was a lot slower than I had hoped for.

Am I pleased to have done it….YES. I felt I may not have shown much speed, but I stuck to it despite the painful legs… but how anyone can do a full Ironman I do not know ( respect to those of you who have ).

Ringmer Community Triathlon - 20th Aug 17

Mon, 04 Sep 2017 07:45:53 GMT

by Bex and Heather Stevens

Another lovely morning for this local event, which had about 100 competitors, including seven from the club. The pool was hot but the roads were flat and fast, although the traffic on the A22 was a little daunting. The run (which was up to three laps) was entertaining - including two styles, a dozen cows and plenty more cow-pats!

Everyone seemed to really enjoy the morning and we were impressed by the friendly organisers and Heather's highlight was the ice-cream van! We would certainly recommend the event for next year, particularly for those wanting a smaller scale event or if you want to set a PB on this speedy course.

Novice Distance (200m / 12k / 3k)

Claire Stafford

1:00:19

Sprint Distance (400m / 23k / 6k)

Roger Moore	1:11:43	2nd place / 1st fastest vet
Sue Newman	1:35:33	1st fastest veteran
Swati Patel	1:47:25

Standard Distance (800m / 40km / 9km)

James Cox	2:08:30	3rd place
Heather Stevens	2:26:43	2nd place

Bewl Tri - 6th Aug 17

Thu, 24 Aug 2017 21:24:18 GMT

by Annie Sidgwick

A beautiful summer morning. An early start at 7am. 6am registration, racking bikes, wet suits on and ready. Lovely swim in very flat calm waters of Bewl. Men set off first in one wave, followed by the women's wave a few minutes later. A long run up a steep grassy bank to transition to take wet suits off, cycle shoes on, helmets on, number on, and off with the bike for the cycle round Kent - Wadhurst, Cousley Wood, Ticehurst and back.

Into transition, bikes racked, helmets off, change shoes, number to the front, and off on run. Down to the dam and run along below the dam wall and back across the top. Twice! (And four times for poor Sally!!)

Everyone did brilliantly. Some getting faster and faster, and better and better.

Well done everyone.

Claire Stafford also came to Bewl, although unable to compete, was the best supporter and photographer one could wish for.

Sprint Distance - Swim 750m (although some say it was nearer 900); Cycle 20k all around Wadhurst, Cousley Wood, Ticehurst; Run 5k over across and back across the dam.

Heather Stevens	1hr 29.01	3rd in age group
Sue Newman	1hr 41.13	6th in age group
Bex Stevens	1hr 41.48	3rd in age group
Annie Sidgwick	1hr 51.47	1st in age group
Sue Pople	1hr 57.31	3rd in age group
Alan Pople	1hr 35.49	3rd in age group
Graham Anderson	1hr 42.07	8th in age group

Standard Distance - Swim 1500m; Cycle 40km; Run 10km

Sally McCleverty

3hrs 16.35

2nd in age group

Tour du Mont Blanc 2017

Sun, 13 Aug 2017 11:54:54 GMT

by Rob Atkinson

1st July 2016

…. as we made the final pedal strokes of our ascent of Alp d’Huez and crossed the finish line a mix of elation & relief washed over us. We had completed La Marmotte, a 175km grand fondo sporif in the French Alps with over 5000m of climbing and just within our target time of 09:30 meaning we had achieved a silver medal! It felt like quite an achievement and had certainly taken all of our effort to get to the finish…..

[approx. 1 month later]…. another Whatsapp message from Charlie to our La Marmotte group. “what are we doing next year then?”. Time having erased the hardship of the previous event, discussion soon flowed with suggestions, including a repeat of this year to support Ben who had failed to complete it. It was during these discussions we discovered the existence of the Tour du Mont Blanc, run by the same organisation that staged La Marmotte and at 330km & 8000m was likened by many as the equivalent of doing 2 Marmotte’s back to back. It also carried the strapline of “world’s toughest one day bike race”.

I’m not sure at what point common sense left the room and persuaded me to enter but enter we did – Darren, Charlie & I. We had all been through officer training at RMAS Sandhurst, how hard could this be?!?

Being a self-confessed data geek I quickly worked out my training plan targeting a Critical Training Load (Fitness) of 100. This had the effect of scaring the living daylights out of me when I realised quite how much work I was going to have to do to achieve this, but having also in a fit of madness signed up for IronMan Copenhagen in August I found myself somewhat committed. On the whole my training went well, I’d recently invested in a new Turbo Trainer & a power meter for my bike so the first step was to redo my Functional Treshold Power (FTP) test, an exercise not for the faint hearted, it involves 20mins of soul searching and utter exhaustion! This allowed me to reset my training zones for Heart Rate & Power so I could judge & manage the intensity of each workout I did.

Over the winter I spent an inordinate amount of time watching Netflix, whilst torturing myself on the trainer, swimming in the pool, cycling to London – oh and a bit of running every now and then!

6 weeks to go

Looking at the training peaks profiles of my team mates it was apparent that I had done significantly more training than either of them. Charlie & I had a rather frank conversation, he clearly understood he had a lot to do to even get to the start line & promptly pulled his finger out to address this. Darren’s approach was slightly more lasse faire & despite the occasional hint he didn’t significantly increase his training load, as a result our fitness levels compared as follows just prior to the event:

Rob – 92 Charlie – 59 Darren - 37

A few days before we were due to fly out I collected the flight box for my bike I had rented, before packing it away I made the conscious decision to change my inner chain ring to a compact (34) which would make life much easier on the long climbs. I had done this for the Marmotte the year before & thought nothing further of it.

The mother of all bike boxes!

D-2 (Thur 13 July) The journey to France was pretty uneventful, Charlie had used his BA Air Miles so he & I were flying Business Class whilst his Ruth (his wife), having only recently elected to join us as support team, was on an Easyjet flight that had been overbooked by 8 places & was waiting to see if anyone would volunteer to be bumped to another flight. At Geneva the hire car company tried to palm us off with a Vauxhall Corsa, until we showed them the two huge flight boxes & our booking confirmation, following which they upgraded us to an estate. Ruth joined us shortly after and we headed to the car park where we scratched our heads as we realised we had booked the car when only 2 of us were travelling and we now had to get the flight boxes in the boot with one of the back seats up! After a bit of juggling we managed to fit everything, including Ruth, in the back although she was somewhat buried under all the luggage.

Buried in the boot

We met up with Darren, who had driven, at the bottom of the mountain in St Gervais le Bain where we did a Hypermarket shop for supplies, knowing from experience that shopping in a ski resort would be expensive. It also allowed me to ride with Darren so we could extricate Ruth from the back of the car. On arrival at le Saisies we spent some time deciphering the directions to the chalet, which were somewhat cryptic. It was typical of a ski resort, clad in pine inside & out but clean & comfortable. Having booked a smaller chalet for La Marmotte, we had decided to do this event in more comfort without the need for anyone to sleep in the lounge.

Room with a View

It was sunny so I elected to set up my bike on the balcony, with a beautiful view across the valley & the tinkling sound of cow bells in the distance. All was going well until I started to refit my stem to the forks. There must have been something wrong with my torque wrench because all of a sudden a loud bang emanated as the bolt sheared off & my heart sank, this was not good. Luckily I managed to find a mountain bike (VTT) hire shop who was able to drill out the end of the bolt that was stuck inside the stem, however as were refitting the stem another load bang emitted. This time the front plate had snapped, I could feel the adrenaline coursing through my body, surely this was some kind of joke!?! The shop managed to find a new plate that would fit & I breathed a sigh of relief, but when they started tightening the bolts one of them pulled the thread clean out of the stem. This could not be happening!?! By now I was soaring at 1000ft as anxiety completely took over, but as chance would have it one of the VTT instructors had an old stem at home he could sell me. It was 30mm too long and possible the ugliest thing I have ever seen, but it did fit & meant I could ride my bike. It was also a relief that the failure of my stem had happened in the workshop & not on an alpine descent at 60+kph.

We finished the day in a traditional Savoyard restaurant, eating our body weight in cheese and having to waddle back to the chalet somewhat regretting our gluttonous appitites.

D-1 (Fri 14 Jul) I woke early and after breakfast decided to check the indexing on my gears, having not had the time to test ride the bike after fitting the compact chainring. This is normally a simple 5min process & I was looking forward to taking the bike for a short ride to keep my legs running & test my lungs in the maintain air. Something was wrong…. the chain kept dropping off whenever I put it on the small chainring!?! I felt the panic of the day before returning, surely this could not be happening. Charlie came out to have a look, having built his own bike from scratch he clearly thought I was crying over spilt milk, but on closer inspection agreed that something was indeed amiss, the chainring I had fitted only day before was bent! At the time I had thought of bringing the other chainring with me but had decided that was not necessary which was somewhat ironic.

So, back at the VTT hire shop I had to explain my latest dilemma in pigeon French. We tried unsuccessfully to straighten the chainring on a bench using a nylon hammer, but quickly came to the conclusion that a replacement was required. The nearest road bike shop was in Albertville, a 45min drive down the mountain but it was closed for lunch until 14:00, so I sat with the others and enjoyed a coffee in the sunshine & tried not to think about it too much.

14:10 In Albertville, the shop was closed & I was cursing the French for their tardy timekeeping and obsession with protracted meals. I decided to try the Decathlon round the corner while I waited, they had nothing suitable, but did helpfully point out that it was Bastille day & the majority of shops would be closed all day!?!

Ok, breathe…. don’t panic, what are the options?

In the end there was only one option - drive to Switzerland where the shops were open. I arrived in Geneva at about 16:30 & after trying a couple of shops found one which had a spare chainring, albeit a 36 cog (Semi-Compact), identical to the one I had removed a few days before. They also had a wide selection of stems so I was able to replace the one I had previously purchased for something that didn’t make my bike look like something from the circus.

After a long drive back I arrived in Les Saises at about 19:30, having missed the race briefing, which had apparently been akin to Churchill’s infamous addresses to the Nation during WWII “It will be long & hard, you will sometimes wonder if you will make it…. Etc”. Luckily Charlie & Darren had managed to register & pick up my race number. They had also managed to hire a bike that I could have used if I had been unsuccessful in fixing my own.

I was exhausted, having spent most of the day on an adrenaline high & was fit for nothing but food, then bed – we had an early start in the morning…..

D-Day (Sat 15 Jul) 05:00 – We were here a last, there was a perceptible atmosphere of nervous tension on the start line as we waited to the signal to go. When it came & we set off some joker had decided to play ACDC “Highway to Hell” on the tannoy, which felt rather apt.

The first decent to Megeve was apparently neutralised, although in the dark & surrounded by cyclists I’m not sure I would have wanted to go any faster, with our average speed exceeding 35kph!! As it got lighter & the first climb kicked in the field thinned out a little & we settled down to the task in hand.

There were several cut off points on the route which we needed to get to in time, or risk being ‘repatriated’. As such I had some weeks before produced a route card for the event which broke the ride into ascents, descents & the average speed we needed to achieve for each segment (lap) in order to achieve this. This predicted our finish time at 18hrs 32mins, I had conservatively assumed an average descent speed of 30kph, so at this point we were ahead.

Route Card (Front & Back)

We lost Darren on the Climb into Switzerland, one minute he was there, the next he wasn’t. We weren’t altogether sure how far back he was, so we agreed to get to the top of the Col de la Forclaz, first of 5 ‘HC’ climbs of the day and take stock there. Having waited at the top for about 5mins to refuel & admire the view with no sign we elected to press on, if Darren was struggling now we didn’t want to jeopardize our changes of finishing by waiting for him.

Switzerland - Col de la Forclaz

The descent to Martigny was exhilarating, we averaged 45kph & topped out at around 72kph. As I looked over the edge, admiring the view my gaze wandered to the Armco barrier that was the only thing between me and a drop of several hundred meters. There was no way that the barrier would provide any protection to a cyclist at speed, so having scared myself enough I decided to concentrate on the tarmac ahead & keeping up with Charlie, who was distinctly braver than me on the downhill sections!

Martigny was our first feed station; typically French this largely consisted of bananas, bread & camembert, which suited me just fine. Still no sign of Darren, so we pressed on to our 2^nd HC climb, the Col de la Champex. Having read extensively about the event I learned that the route was based on two stages of the 1996 TdF. In order to join the start/finish points of each stage the organisers had added this cheeky little climb.

By this time Charlie was starting to struggle, but we were still ahead of time so there was nothing to be too concerned about although the next climb was the biggest on the route. At an altitude of nearly 3000m the Col de Grand St Bernard is a formidable climb in its own right. So much so that someone saw fit to go to the expense of digging a tunnel through the mountain to get from Switzerland to Italy! I decided it would be best to split the ascent into 3 pitches of 8km with a brief stop each time to feed & rest. The plan was going well, until the road peeled off into the tunnel & we turned left following the ominous signs to ‘le Col’. The road quickly pitched up and for the final 8km it stayed consistently between 11-13% (about the same as Kid’s Hill). This gradient, combined with the sun & the thinner air was punishing & I found myself having to dig deep to keep going. Needless to say we stopped a few more times in the final 8km before we reach the top and rolled into Italy.

Italy - Col de la Grand St Bernard

It was a hot day, but at the top the temperature had dropped to about 6 degrees due to the altitude, so we donned our flimsy waterproofs as protection from the cold air as we descended. At the bottom in Aosta it was 36 degrees!

We turned right up the valley & the wind, that had previously been at our backs, was now right in our faces. This was a long 30km stretch of relatively flat terrain, along which we should have made good progress, but with tired legs we found ourselves struggling to hold the pace I had set on the route card. This was for me the toughest stretch of the event mentally, we still had over 130km to go!

At the feed station, as we tucked into pasta in tomato sauce we heard from Ruth, who had driven out to Orsieries to pick up Darren. He had made it over the Col de Champex, but was exhausted & had been vomiting so had decided to call it day after 130km in the saddle. Ruth & Darren were now in the car following the route & having taken the tunnel were not far behind, tracking us using iOS ‘find my friends’ app.

Looming ahead was the Col de Petit St Bernard and the border back into France. Ruth & Darren leapfrogged us as we ascended, ringing a cow bell out of the window every time they passed & providing food & water on demand. We rolled straight over the Col & began our descent without our waterproofs this time, which turned out to be a mistake. By the time we reached Bourg St Maurice at the bottom I could not feel my fingers or feet and was shivering with cold.

back into France - Col de Petit St Bernard

Charlie was now feeling the effects of his lack of training & was a spent force up the Col de Roselend, making frequent stops, presumably to try & find the sense of humour he had mislaid somewhere along the way. At this stage, Charlie was concerned that he was holding me up in case we missed the cut off. I had constantly had one eye on the route card all day & was confident of making it to the Col on time, however I did have a slight concern about finishing within 19hours as I had it in my head that this was the cut off for finishing. I did not want to come all this way & go home without a finishers medal! We both made it to the top 60mins ahead of the Broom Wagon, by this time it was dark & we donned our warm kit for the descent as the temperature had dropped significantly.

For the first time Charlie was slower than me on the descent, with the 19hr finish in mind I elected to press on. I had made sure Charlie had made it this far & he had Ruth & Darren to support him, now it was time for me to ride for myself.

The descent was fast, with the occasional bike light in the distance pointing out the bends in the road. I was grateful I had carried my heavier 600 lumen front light, as it lit the road enough for me to see. Most people were stopping at the bottom to take some of their warm kit off, but with the support car behind me I had no-one to give it to so pressed on to the final climb back to Les Saisies, a gruelling 15km at a fairly consistent 8% gradient. I was flying now and overtaking groups of cyclists until I found myself on my own in the darkness. By this time I was focussed on one data screen on my Garmin ETA at destination, 19hrs was midnight I was currently showing 23:31. There was not long to go now so I knew as long as I paced myself to the top I would finish, but the final few km was a real slog, until I started to come into the village where all the cars passing back down the hill were shouting encouragement & I knew I was near the end.

As I crossed the line in a time of 18:37 it was a feeling mostly of relief, followed by a concern for Charlie & how he was fairing. My first call was to Sienna, who had been following me on Find my Friends all day & all the emotion of the past few days flooded out. The second was to Ruth to check on Charlie who was steadfastly plodding up the hill under ‘encouragement’ (he would call it bullying) from the support car. I rode back the last 500m to meet up with him and rode with him to the finish. He crossed the line in 19:20, I am pleased to say I was mistaken with respect to the 19hr limit & so he received his finishers medal too.

We finished our day with a meal & a glass of wine at 1AM but Charlie & I were clearly too tired for anything resembling social interaction.

D+1 – The next day I woke surprisingly early considering. Ruth & Darren left at about midday to catch flights & ferries respectively, so Charlie & I took the opportunity to visit the Les Thermes in St Gervais to relax in the mineral rich waters of the Spa, well worth a visit if you are in the area.

D+2 – Back on the plane, the suffering of the day before yesterday was clearly starting to fade from Charlie’s memory already as he leaned over & said “what about Majorca 312 next Easter….?”

Reflections: Its all about the preparation......

I had done more work on my fitness than the others & this showed in the numbers in our training plans. The others faired in accordance with their scores, which proved to me that there is some sense in the science.

On the other hand, I made a crucial mistake in making changes to my bike setup too late in the day & not test riding it after the changes to make sure everything was working. I will also take some more tools & spares with me next time.

My nutrition plan had also worked well & I was able to do the whole event using only 2 gels and a cheeky can of coke. Other than this all I ate was ‘real’ food including my own home made low carb energy bars.

The Tour du Mont Blanc was a hugely challenging endeavour, which was immensely satisfying to complete, but not one I would necessarily want to repeat.

McCleverty’s climb the Alpes

Tue, 08 Aug 2017 15:18:14 GMT

By Sally McCleverty

After a trip last year to see the Tour de France and cycle a few famous Cols, my husband and I are hooked on climbing the most famous climbs of the Tour. So this year the main aim was to climb L’Alpe d’Heuz. So here is a short resume of our trip.

Bourg- d’Oisan

This is the perfect place to explore this region of the Alpes. We pitched our Caravan on a campsite 30m from the base of L’Alpe d’Heuz! But we managed other climbs as well.

Croiz de la Croix de Fer.

27.km long, average gradient of 11%, climbed on a day of over 30degree temperatures.

On the Way Up.....

Views from the top.......

We really did make it!!

On the way down.

Alpe d’Huez

13.2km long, average gradient 11%. An amazing climb with 21 bends all with a plaque commemorating previous winners of the stage.

We then continued over the top and towards Col de Glandon. We made our decent, v,v,v,v slowly in my case as it was very steep.

Les Deux Alpes

10km, 11% gradient, climbed on a Saturday where 100’s of mountain bikers were using the ski lifts to cycle down.

We also climbed Col d’Ornan, 11.1km with a 9% average gradient.

We then moved onto Chatel. This is a beautiful Alpine ski resort close to the Swiss border where I had my only opportunity to swim!!

We did one small but very steep climb in freezing rain.

Col de Bassacheux is not a Tour climb, but we had to do it for the views, but there weren’t any that day!!

I did Col du Corbier on my own as my husband was ill. 6km long with 11% gradient and amazingly Geoff Turner did it on the same day!!!

On the way down the other side.

I hope you like the pictures.

We're hoping to go to the Pyrenees next summer......

Spontaneous Tri

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 09:31:09 GMT

By Sue Pople

You know how it is…….one thing leads to another.

Well a week ago a small group of us swam 4 km in Weirwood to raise money for the Hospice in the Weald, an event organised by Alex. Walking back to the car park, one friend suggested that we add a cycle ride onto an early morning swim. Obviously a good idea and another person said “ why don’t we add a park run “ so before we knew it, a plan was hatched to have our own Triathlon.!!

So last Saturday morning, a small but crazy group of “Triathletes” met at Weirwood at 6.45am. This was Alex, Heather, Alan, Sue, Annie and Claire. We swam 1300m in the beautifully warm waters of Weirwood and headed back to the club house for transition. I am sure in Robs latest transition training session, there must have been a mention of showering because Heather decided that was an essential part of the triathlon! Meanwhile Annie and Claire opted to drive to Haywards Heath to the Claire Hall park run.

With Heather smelling fresh as a daisy, the remaining group of 4 started the ride to Haywards Heath. Alans navigational skills didn’t let us down and apart from going through a road closed section where we felt sure no one would be working, but there were men laying fresh tar, there were no problems. I will confess at this point that I have decided that my E bike is the new love of my life, although Alex did say I have an evil snigger as I approach the hills and overtake him!

Waiting at the start of the run, it was brought to our attention that Alex had been “uncomfortable” on the bike ride. No details required! It was then pointed out that he had his Tri suit on back to front therefore offering saddle comfort in all the wrong places. Fortunately there were nearby amenities for him to sort out his clothing !

The park run was well organised and included a climb which was called a hill in Sussex. Nothing compared to the hills we have in Crowborough ! Unfortunately Claire had a to pull out of the run due to painful hips.

We felt obliged to follow up the run with coffee and cake in the local high street, giving us all time to stiffen up before the ride back to Weirwood. We just made it back before a small shower of rain, just to freshen Heather up again.

It was a great morning but a lesson learnt……. Choose your friends carefully!

P.S Rob, please don’t despair!!

Hospice in the Weald 2k swim, Weir Wood Resevoir

Sat, 08 Jul 2017 06:00:00 GMT

By Alex Cole - Shop Development Manager - Hospice in the Weald

With the original date postponed until later in the year, Kate Walker and I had trained too hard to step back from this challenge and it was fortunate enough that we were able to recruit a support team courtesy of Freedom Tri Club, Crowborough of which I have been a member for a couple of years now.

We met early on a clear morning and reassured ourselves that it is only 4 laps, it was just the fact that each lap was 500m that was niggling at the back of our minds, but all of us too full of the team spirit to share those thoughts – positivity and support two key factors of effective teamwork and we had it in abundance. After a few minutes of stretching both our bodies and our funny looking neoprene costumes we braved the few steps beyond the waters edge only to discover that the sign optimistically boasting 23 degrees was not mistaken, the water was beautifully warm and suddenly its’ calmness surrounded our bodies and we set off.

The water busied as the distance passed, it seems these early birds may have caught the worm but the regular and strong swimmers soon caught us! We remained calm and focussed on the mission in hand all the same - I remember counting down the laps and before I knew it I was a quarter of the way, then half way, then over half way and soon enough there was only one more lap to go and that niggle of 500m laps had disappeared - the end was in sight.

A feeble attempt to swim faster on the home straight hardly made any difference but assured me I had used all the energy I had in my body and as my feet found the floor for the first time in 47 mins, I was greeted by Alan, the wearer of red hat that I had seen pass me early on but kept in close range knowing we were similar levels in the training pool. A few minutes passed and Annie, our GBR age grouper popped up from the approaching pack of swim caps, then Kate, then Sue and Graham (not pictured as still swimming due to a halfway pit stop).

The Stevens family (Heather, Bex and Aunty Stevens) had decided to get out of bed and join us for a photo opportunity, they then proceeded to swim the distance once we had left the water, or so they tell us!

I should mention that not long after we finished, our team coach Rob popped by, for many of us the first time we had seen him actually in the water, he confirmed why he is the coach, he had swam a lap further than us despite starting later, maybe a benefit of an extra half an hour in bed, maybe the fact that he is a better swimmer!

A great morning was had by all and some huge accomplishments realised, the farthest most of us had swum, not to mention raising some essential funds that go toward caring for patients and families at Hospice in the Weald.

Thank you to everyone that supported and please let us know if you fancy an early morning open water adventure, we will certainly be going back for more!

Crowborough to the Somme

Thu, 06 Jul 2017 12:30:09 GMT

By Rob Atkinson

Due to a last minute cancellation I was lucky enough to be invited to join Guy, Alan & Dave on their Annual trip to France. Given that Sienna was out of the country there was no requirement for any leave pass application & I naturally jumped at the chance. It also offered the opportunity to get some decent miles in my legs prior to my next adventure (more to follow…..).

We were headed to Thiepval, the site of the Memorial to the missing of the Somme, near the town of Albert. A ride of approximately 140km each way.

Dave & I met at the White Hart in Crowborough at 19:00 and headed off towards Halland to meet Guy. Arriving a full 20mins early we were just discussing the merits of sneaking in a cheeky pint when rather disappointingly we spotted Guy (also early) on the other side of the roundabout. The wind was strong & gusty on our way down to Newhaven, which was to set a precedent for the weekend.

On arrival at Newhaven we met up with Alan and, having been told the ferry would be boarding in the next 10mins, eagerly joined the queue of cars & bikes. 10mins turned into 90mins as we stood in the car park, the wrong side of passport control, the terminal building in clear line of sight whilst Guy steadily turned into a Popsicle.

We finally boarded at 11:00, found our cabin and promptly nipped to the bar for a beer before turning in….. 3.5hrs later the lights came on and the Tannoy announced our arrival in Dieppe so we wearily pulled ourselves of bed in an effort to get to the canteen before the breakfast queues got too big.

It’s worth noting at this point that timing on the ferry is critical. Get on early and you can beat the queues for the cabins, but on arrival your bike is buried under 100s of others & patience is required as everyone on top of you reclaims their steed (unless of course you are the shameless American who foolishly attempted to pull his bike out from the bottom of the pile, almost initiating a world record domino rally until he was set straight by your friendly Tri Club Coach).

It was still dark when we set off but as the sun rose we found ourselves riding on quiet roads through rolling countryside, with the wind at our backs. The weather was cloudy, but warm – perfect conditions for a long ride. As such we made good progress despite Garmin Express routing us down some rather suspect cart tracks which proved somewhat challenging on road bikes, surprisingly there were no mechanicals and the consensus of the group was that diversions were preferable to any further off roading.

We arrived at the memorial at about 13:00. It was a peaceful spot on a prominent hill in the centre of what had been the British Sector of the Somme during WW1. The sheer number of names on the memorial was humbling to say the least, to think of the lives lost in conflict over such a short period of time. As an ex-serviceman myself I found it to be a poignant experience & an opportunity to remember friends & colleagues.

Our hotel was in the nearby town of Albert, which was another 6km from the memorial. After a late lunch we checked in and immediately showered before going to bed to catch up on the sleep missed the night before, with the exception of Dave who instead opted to sit in the bar and fuel himself with coffee whilst chatting to a Harley Davidson owner from Fairwarp (small world).

Dinner was typically French, al fresco in the town square with live entertainment from a local group of Bagpipers!?!?! Wine was excellent, as you would expect in France.

The following morning was damp and blustery, the windspeed had increased & the forecast was for gusts in the region of 45km/h, only this time we would be cycling straight into it! Gone were the smiling faces & casual two abreast cycling of the day before as we formed an echelon, taking turns at the front to push through the wind. The effect was so huge I found myself freewheeling behind Guy occasionally touching the brakes to stay behind him whilst his legs were spinning constantly to maintain momentum.

About 10km all was well until… ‘twang, clank, clank, clank’ something was definitely wrong with my bike & I braked sharply, the others narrowly avoiding piling into the back of me. On inspection, I had broken a spoke in my rear wheel, probably as a result of our off road antics the day before, which was now resembling a banana – our hearts sank, we still had 130km to go!?! Luckily by releasing the rear brake cable I could ride on it albeit slightly more cautiously than previously. This lasted until 30km to go when my tyre punctured due to a slight rubbing on the frame wearing it through to the inner tube. As any avid GCN watcher will know this can easily be fixed temporarily using a 20Euro note to line the tyre and I was able to limp home the final few miles to Dieppe in time to eat before the ferry (I have subsequently discovered the existence of a ‘tyre boot’ which is far more economical than 20euros).

The crossing home was spent swapping cycling ‘war’ stories in the bar, whilst Alan kept a watchful eye on his mobile phone for any news of the now imminent 4th Grandchild. Thanks must go to Graham for collecting us from Newhaven at short notice as Sue was otherwise indisposed at the hospital.

Congrats to Alan & Sue on the arrival of Harry.

Thanks to guy for organising the trip, I would definitely recommend next year’s soiree to anyone considering it.

Half a Marathon in the Midnight Sun

Thu, 06 Jul 2017 09:54:42 GMT

By Bex & Heather Stevens

In June 2017, the Stevens Sisters (with their brother and co) jumped on a plane or two and headed for the Arctic city of Tromsø, Norway to embark on our first ever sporting event abroad. We were initially inspired after hearing friends of friends had entered, and the fact that this was the world’s northernmost certified marathon!

We flew from Heathrow with a short stopover in Oslo before arriving in Tromsø approximately five hours later. We had a lovely Airbnb booked in a village called Ersfjordbotn, which was approximately a 20 minute drive from the town centre. To be able to open our front door and see a backdrop of mountains, fjords and waterfalls was something very special. It was so scenic it could have been a Microsoft desktop background!

We arrived the day before the run and after missing the official ‘Pasta Party’ we decided to have one of our own. Carb loading is always a highlight of pre-race preparation!!

After a good sleep in broad daylight (which takes a little getting used to) we decided to hire a car after learning that buses from Ersfjordbotn were somewhat on the infrequent side. We drove into Tromsø to pick up our race packs and soaked up the atmosphere by supporting some of the children races in the afternoon. After some exploring, we decided to rest our legs in a nearby pub. The good news was that we didn’t drink alcohol. The bad news was we accidentally ordered this alternative pre-race nutrition…

The marathon commenced at 8.30 pm and the half-marathon at 10.30 pm. It was a fairly small scale event with a couple of thousand participants. The conditions were perfect for running: it was not too cold, there was no wind and the sun even made an appearance. There was also a light misting of rain which meant we were fortunate enough to see a rainbow. It was impossible not to take a photo or two.

The half marathon course followed the same route as the last 21km of the marathon. It went through the town centre and thankfully the snow-capped mountains remained at a safe distance! The course was described as ‘relatively flat’ and certainly compared to Crowborough it was! However it was tough and undulating in places which meant we both suffered from stiches at various points. We found that taking some deep breaths and doing side stretches seemed to resolve this.

While there were not a huge number of spectators, the ones that were there were very supportive. We saw many waving international flags from balconies reflecting how far and wide people had travelled to take part. The crowds were shouting something sounding like ‘HEY-YA!’ as we passed which was extremely encouraging, despite not knowing what it meant.

Overall, the race was very well organised, there were plenty of water stations (although it was important to master the art of drinking from plastic cups on the move – there is a secret technique!) and it was a fantastic novelty to be running in the glorious midnight sunlight.

We were both happy to finish in 1.55 and our splits showed that our pacing was consistent throughout. Although no PBs were set, this was definitely an ‘experience’ race. It was too picturesque not to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the views. Would we recommend it? It’s not every day you get to run at midnight and watch the sun set over a mountainous backdrop; it’s without a doubt worth the trip.

Nightrider 2017

Fri, 23 Jun 2017 08:56:40 GMT

By Graham Anderson

So, what is Nightrider.....?

It's an annual overnight charity cycling event which takes place in 3 UK cities, London, Bristol & Liverpool.

After several years I'd finally persuaded someone to do Nightrider with me, so here I was on a humid Saturday evening at the Olympic Park with my sister-in-law, Mandy & her friend, Sue ready to set off with around 3000 other mad people to cycle around the streets of London. We'd done our training, bikes were prep'd and we'd selected what to wear, taking Alan's advice to take our wet weather jackets as there was a chance of rain in the early hours of Sunday morning - thanks Alan for the use of your rack by the way!

We'd opted for 100km distance so we're following the yellow route (not pink which was the 50km route), and were told "it's not a race" at the briefing 2 mins before 11pmwhich was our start time. Yeah, like that phrase exists in the mind of a triathlete !!

We quickly set off on the count of 3,2,1 go….. knowing the next group were only a couple of minutes behind, in an array of white and red flashing lights, proudly wearing our green hi-vis Nightrider vest tops. The first 4km was around the Velo Park, long sweeping corners, sprints, hairpins, bridges and no traffic, a perfect start to get us going before hitting the roads. And then we were off to Hackney, following the yellow & pink routes signs at this stage ....but where are those signs? a quick retrace & we found a lamp post where the signs had been spun around, we should have taken a left turn. So after rearranging the sign we were back of course and off to Highbury, then Holloway where the routes split so it was yellow signs from now and on and we were off towards Hampstead Heath, our first hill and first of the organised stops. We'd completed the first section, 16km and 535 ft of climbing.

Off we set again after a quick tour of the facilities, toilets, snacks, with water bottles filled up, all very organised, there was even a first-aid tent & bike mechanics too. Next stop was the Imperial War Museum in Southwark. The route took us through Camden, followed by a short stretch along the canal (on the road) by Little Venice & then we weaved our way down to Kensington & Chelsea, passing the Royal Albert Hall, Victoria & Albert museum, around Sloane Square over Lambeth Bridge & finally reaching stop no2. We'd completed 25km and 444 ft of climbing in this section.

Another quick stop & we were off again looping back across Westminster bridge, past Big Ben up to Buckingham Place, cycling along the Mall under the union jacks at at 3am on a Sunday morning was quite surreal. At Trafalgar square we looped back along Pall Mall across to the Ritz and then off to Piccadilly Circus along Shaftesbury Avenue, Covent Garden, Smithfields, Cannon Street and over Blackfriars bridge and to Southwark for stop 3 where we exchanged our first voucher for a hot drink and cake!

Feeling suitably refreshed, with another 19km & 488 ft of climbing under our belt we set off on the fourth of the five sections which would take us to Dulwich park. This was the hilliest section, taking us briefly along the Thames and then a sharp right up maze hill with Greenwich park on our right and then on down to Lewisham, before the long climb up through Sydenham and almost down to Crystal Palace, phew this was almost on par with some of our Thursday night climbs! And then as always, what goes up comes down, and we enjoyed a lovely (apart from the speed bumps) decent to Dulwich Park. Another 18km & 674 ft of climbing this time.

For the final section, 22km & 425ft of climbing, we decided to go at our own pace and meet at the finish. The thought of a bacon butte, medal and "it's not a race" resounding in my ears, I'm afraid got the better of me and the weariness of the long night disappeared as I sped off. Passing through Camberwell and Bermondsey and then crossing the Thames a fourth time, I should have stopped and taken a photo of Tower Bridge, ah well! I was catching many tired nightriders during this section until I linked up with another equally competitive cyclist and we ended up draughting off each other for the final 10km, bouncing over the Wapping cobbles, ah those cobbles! Through Canary Wharf, no green signs here, far too posh! just a few security guards waving us directions! Docklands across the A13 up to Bow & finally into the Olympic park to be met with a cheer as we passed under the start/finish arch again.

A great evening & over £700 raised for charity.

Dragon Ride 2017

Fri, 23 Jun 2017 08:55:46 GMT

by Guy Davies

The final push, legs hurting, sweat running in to your eyes, looking at the hill gradient on the screen. Checking your perceived rate of effort, cadence, and heart rate, almost there. Considerably warmer than when we started, when you could see your breath. A pile of cloths by your side. And times up. Alan turns the music off the blue tooth in his garage and clicks the Dragon Ride DVD out of the TV. A little chat after in the warm down. I have to admit I was thinking I couldn’t sit on a turbo for 11 hours to complete that ride it would boar me stupid.

It’s dead easy to do an hour, if you have a bunch of mates around you, banging music, and a wee chat in the easy breaks.

Fast forward six months. Early morning news says warming up, sunny spells. A peak out of the

curtains and it’s hard to make out the grey horizontal line of smoke from the Port Talbot steel works from the grey steel works the grey sky the grey town the grey sea, and grey feeling in my gut. The only change in the grey atmosphere was the white horses smashing on the beach.

The weather man says it’s going to clear up and the wind stop. Much the same as Michael Fish in 87. Like 140mls in one hit wasn’t enough we had decided to ride to the start, a further distance of 7mls. In most big events the atmosphere is tangible at the start, a mixture of anticipation, excitement and fear. This was decidedly lack lustre. A group of about 50 of us left our start gate, heading back along towards Port Talbot in to a cross wind and strait away a working peloton got together, rolling ball, two lines, up the outside through and off ,30 seconds on the front then the next man comes up and leads off. I hit the front as the group approached a roundabout, it felt just like “the tour” everyone lined out behind, sweeping

round the bends full tilt, but as we turned the roundabout, I’m smack in to a head wind. A glance at the smoke stack showed the smoke horizontal. Lucky I’m only up front for 30secs or so, , well a bit longer, well ok they’ll be past me in a moment. I press on and glance back the two lines had become one and every one, my son-in- law sitting second wheel included very happy to tuck in, thanks very much. There is no way I’m going to sit up with a long group like this behind so tapped out a rhythm for a good 4miles till we turned in land and Andy my son in law swept by to take a turn pulling without trying, the wind hard at his back . Making a feeble effort to hide his smirk.

The next 10 miles were rolling hills and dismal ex-mining villages. The slope became a ramp and the ramp turned in to a hill. The summit obscured by the thickening cloud, which as we climbed became heavy mist then light rain, becoming driving rain. The summit of the hill to our windward side fell away and we took the full force of the gale hitting us side on. We turned back on our self at a hair pin and to our relief gave us a slight lift up to the summit of the next hill. Then a final hairpin as we rounded the top, straight back in to the wind. The wind turbots’ looking like roman coulombs with nothing attached to the top as they disappeared in to the blanket of rain and cloud. Can’t be sure but a recon about 6.7 klms of climbing covered. Apparently the hill is called Bwlch, which for those of you that don’t talk welsh means Bwlch??

The decent required all your whit’s about you, while it was tempting to let go the breaks seeing the riders on front suddenly swerve sideways across the road as the cross wind caught them meant only the hardy or stupid tried to make up time on a decent. We did see 2 people who had had bad falls as a result of being hit by cross winds.

The 4 food stations, that, on the web site were hailed as better than average were pretty dismal. They boasted a good selection of savoury foods that turned out to be cold roast potatoes. None of them had adequate stands for bikes, so bikes were just left lying on their sides all over the car parks. Toilets were portaloos with long queues. And only one had a building where you could get out of the rain. In the others riders were squashed under the tents trying to get out of the intermittent rain. Roads rolled up and down with very little traffic. The views on many occasions were genuinely breath taking. Rain and wind came and went first too hot then too cold. A glance at the strip of masking tape I had stuck to the cross bar had all the key points marked on it like feed station distances, foot of the major climbs cut off times etc. A handy tip for those of you doing long Sportives or distance riding in new territories. Next leg stretcher before the Devil, is Rhigos another 7.8klm climb at about 8%. Just put the brain in to neutral and let the legs do what they do best. The Devil’s elbow was due up at the 97k mark, in 2 klms time. So Andy and I backed off a little to save ourselves. The main part of the hill its self is not to long but a bit of researched showed on the first hair pin the inside track shot up to 40% gradient and the outside a mere 25% . So do I cut the corner and go for broke and try to steel time on Andy? Or cruse around the outside? I’m mad but not insane. There were some incredible riders who just flew past us going up the Devils elbow. There was one guy who was very very. Very very what I’m not sure? He was on his phone riding with one hand, just sat up like he was on a Sunday outing. Very confident and strong or very stupid. The hill is only about 1.7 of a kilometre but the two hair pins are a killer, under different circumstances I may have stepped off but no one even looked like cracking and wasn’t going to be the one. Did you see that old boy having to walk? poor old git shouldn’t be doing this sort of stuff at his age. NOT this time pal.

Approximately 90 klms further on of ups and downs, plenty of rain and even stronger wind we

started a climb. Like many others you’re never sure how long they are going to be you see one false summit after another. With the rain on my glasses I remember glancing at the sheep on the face of the steep hill in front and thinking how do they manage to stay on such a hill face and not slip off. As we approached the sheep almost appeared to be in a line heading towards the summit. Closer still, must be the rain on my glasses they looked as though they were odd colours, they were plenty of white but red and blue and pink. Seeing the hair pin in front and the trajectory of the road from it made it clear these stoic sheep were in fact stoic riders. Oh Shit. This cruel assent went on for another mile. One of the great cycling climbers always said the bigger the hill the better the view, I was slightly disappointed not to be able to see America from here but then it was cloudy. As we summated the black mountain the wind slapped us right on the face again. The race brief claims at this point the remainder of the 60 klms is down hill to the finish, apart from one hill at 200k mark. We consumed our last energy bars gulped down water, came off the round about to read. “Warning Hill” 1.7klms long max gradient 17% average 8.5%. How’s that for a warm down after 200ks?

Wind up the legs, spin spin spin, save your heart from busting, and your home and dry.

The finish line / encampment was as disappointing as the other feed stations. More than half of it was packed down. Medals were handed out, very matter of fact and the promised re-go recovery drink that was offered was a packet of powder. Find your own water mate.

The extra seven miles back to the hotel seemed a doddle. Round trip on the day 155 miles.

A great challenge but I can think of a lot of better organised ones I would do again before I resorted to this one again.

Fifth in my age group but to be honest there weren’t that many daft enough to enter.

Still, another tick in the chuff list.