Back into Triathlon retirement - for good!

My retirement from triathlon didn’t last long.

Not even a month after the London Triathlon and the bug bit. I was waking up to a 6am alarm call to head to Matlock.

Not my usual start to a Bank Holiday Monday, I must say. It often entails struggling to get out of the sack until midday after a day of drinking.

But, after paying just £7.50 to enter, a snip in the world of triathlon, I was lining up in Matlock.

The MARS Triathlon is in its seventh year and was superbly run.
The problem was, even the swim seemed uphill. It was torture.

After that first leg at Matlock Lido it was the ten-mile bike ride, which proved more than a little gruelling.

Having not got on the bike since London’s efforts, the last thing I expected was the mammoth climb in the middle of the bike section on Lea Main Road.

Never ending, it led to some having to push their bikes at times. I didn’t but such was the severity of the slope, that would have been the quicker option!

But after a second transition into the run, I felt good. After all, that is what I have been doing plenty of since London.

What I did not expect was the run to be to the tliff that towers over Matlock at 389ft, and back down. That is a challenge when walking, let alone running.

I’ll hold my hands up, I came to walking pace on a couple of occasions. A few beers the night before wasn’t the best preparation for this.

But on the way down, nearing the end, I noticed a child, in full triathlon gear, powering up the hill, a smile on his face.

As I finished in, to be fair, a poor 74 minutes, I was just happy to have crossed the line although a good bit of exercise for a Bank Holiday.

But when I looked at the results, I saw that little lad had finished more than two minutes ahead of me.

And, the best of it was, he was just NINE years old.

A storming effort for such a little nipper, one to look out for in the future.

But maybe now really is the time to put my triathlon gear in the back of the garage....for good!

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