The Slanghoek triathlon is held at one of the most beautiful venues – in the breathtakingly beautiful Slanghoek Valley on the Breedekloof Wine Route.
The forecast was for a hot and windless day and Mr Weatherman got it spot on!
My plan was to start fast in the swim as I know I often lack a bit of confidence so take it easier than I should. But I started way too fast! Half way to the first buoy I thought ‘S#$% I’m going to die!’ I had to take a few seconds to get my body calmed down and try to find a rhythm. My sighting for the buoys is usually quite good but for some reason today I was swimming very skew.
I jumped off the platform for the second lap of the swim with very little style! With more space now I got into a rhythm quickly.
I ran into T1 struggling to get my wetsuit off over my watch but somehow managed in my franticness! I was quickly out of transition and now was time to play catch up!
Its always nice to overtake rather than be overtaken and no one passed me on the bike nor the run 🙂
I felt great on the bike and was enjoying reeling in the ladies in front of me. At one point I had a camera man hanging out the window of the car alongside me – he seemed to be there for ages! I gave him a smile and a wave – I was hoping I didn’t have snot across my face!
By the end of the bike leg I was lying in 5th position. I had a fantastic flying dismount off the bike, which could have gone disastrously wrong and was quickly through T2 and onto the run.
I was very glad I opted to wear my New Balance minimus trail shoes as they were perfect for the sandy route. I passed the 4th placed lady in the first kay. After my initial increased heart rate at the start of the run it soon settled. It was getting pretty hot by now so was grateful for a quick water stop at about the 4km marker. It was a flat run route but the sand made it hard work so I tried to find the firmer spots at the sides of the track. With about 2km to go I caught a glimpse of Colleen, who was in 3rd place. I began to push a bit more but I was going to need more than 2km to catch her!
I finished feeling strong and was pleased with my race 🙂
Thanks 32Gi, Celtic Bicycle Wheels and my coach Dave (sorry that you got chicked ;-))
Time: (1.3km/42km/10km) 2:25:38
Position: 4th (18-39), 7th overall lady
