<?xml version="1.0"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Route planning - Tri247</title><link>http://www.tri247.com/index.html</link><description>Latest route planning articles from Tri247</description><item><title><![CDATA[Route of the Month: Wimbleball]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_1839.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[With UK Ironman 70.3 ahead of us this weekend in Wimbleball, it is a great time to re-visit one of our Garmin Route of the Month features from the bike course!

This month&amp;rsquo;s Route of the Month is the UK Ironman 70.3 course at Wimbleball in Somerset. The course was ridden for us as a training exercise by Mat Cowdrey and Richard Merry who kindly carried the Garmin Edge 305 unit to get the route data for us.

Matthew is an experienced triathlete at both Ironman and ITU Long Course (the good old fashioned Nice-distance type) and is currently sponsored by Tri-UK. Richard is a member of East Grinstead Tri Club who is making his first step up to Ironman 70.3 from a number of years at Standard distance. Neither had ridden the course before and the following gives their account of the route. Matthew was riding a Giant TCR Trinity with Reynolds DV UK wheels, Oval A900 Upgrade tri bars and an Ultegra 53:39 and 11:25 setup. Richard was riding an Argon 18 Helium with Ultegra 53:39 and 12:27 setup.
The numbers in square brackets [x] refer to locations on the map and represent the major identification points on the route map. You can match these very easily to the map on the MotionBased system which we have included below. Because both riders were wearing their own HRM units we did not record a heart rate trace on the Edge. 
 

Transition [1]

M: As soon as you come out of transition you start going uphill. This sets the scene for the next 20 minutes of riding so make sure you&amp;rsquo;re in a nice small gear and just spin up the first couple of hundred metres. As you hang a right at the end of the lane you start to descend and you&amp;rsquo;re able to pick up a fair bit of speed as you cross the lake. Immediately you&amp;rsquo;re across the lake you start your first sharp climb of the day. I was able to spin this reasonably well in 39/25 and although I stayed seated, the HR did rise a little. From here the road rolls up and down for the next two miles until you get to the junction with the B3190.
R: The initial climb proved a little harder for me although I did remain seated and tried to spin my 27 (a very suitable addition for the weekend!) We did gain over 300ft in this opening section.
Turn left [2]
M: You turn left and have a short hop to the A3224. The road is a little bumpy in places, but nothing out of the ordinary. Just as the road flattens out you take a very sharp turn left [3].
R: An uneventful opportunity to put some air back in my lungs after the first couple of miles.
Left turn [3]
M: After this left turn you can just get it in the big ring and work. Even the uphill pieces feel quite smooth and the rolling nature of the road means that you can maintain good speed as you climb. I spent this entire stretch of road on the tri-bars
As you approach the last piece of this top road you can stay in the big ring and work the bike out of the saddle to the top of the slope before you do a sharp left turn.
R: Overall a pretty flat leg of the loop, no real time lost by not being on a TT bike set-up here and a chance to catch your breath after the initial climb and get some food and drink onboard.

Turn left towards Dulverton/Tiverton [4]

M: After the turn you have a good half a mile of downhill where you can pick up speed nicely, whilst at the same time keeping an eye out for some uneven road surface. You face three short climbs on this stretch of road that it&amp;rsquo;s perfectly possible to take in the big ring although I&amp;rsquo;d probably err on the side of caution and spin up them. You can let the bike go on all of this stretch of road giving you a good lead into the uphills as the road continues to open up in front of you.
R: This 9 mile stretch of the route drops the best part of 1000ft, there are some short, sharp hills but the speed gained means they are just a &amp;ldquo;spoiler&amp;rdquo; to what would be a fantastic descent.

M: The end of this stretch of road is met with a very sharp and descent where you just bleed speed as you have no choice but to be on the brakes. You&amp;rsquo;ll see the descent coming to your right as you ride through some heavy tree cover so you should have fair warning. At the bottom of this descent you take a 90-degree left turn.
R: This downhill and the turns to negotiate at the bottom mean you have no choice but to cover the brakes, any speed gained on the drop down will have been lost by the time you reach the turn onto the A396 so sit back and enjoy.
Steep downhill then sharp left [5]

M: Once on the A396 you get to enjoy what is probably the only truly flat piece of road on the course. Enjoy it while it lasts.
As you come in to Exbridge you approach a very small village with a pink/orange sided house on the other side of the road. As you get level with the house you have a blind left hand turn to make at Wilson&amp;rsquo;s farm.

Sharp, hidden left turn [6]

M: Ahead of you is the first of the real climbs. You can see the hedge line ahead of you as you start to climb and it&amp;rsquo;s the pylons at the top that you&amp;rsquo;re aiming for. I was able to spin this one to start with but was soon out of the saddle with a 39/25. Although steep it&amp;rsquo;s over pretty much as soon as it started and you&amp;rsquo;re on the downhill.

R: The first real shock to the system, I was spinning away happily under the crackling power cables when the road kicked up a little more, maybe for only 4-500m but enough to get me up out of the saddle and my heart rate up to 180bpm, about 90% HR max.
The first real climb of the day.
M: After what is a very short downhill you get to a T-junction where you turn left. You&amp;rsquo;re soon into a slight incline that goes on for half a mile or so and again I was able to spin this out with a 39/21.
Left towards Morebath [7]
 
M: As the road progress round to the right you pass a driveway with two birds of prey at the end. This is a good place to take in some nutrition as you have about two minutes to the main climb of the day. The road bends left and then left again and over to your right you get to see the 14% hill that everyone&amp;rsquo;s told you about.
Time for a quick feed
M: It starts out pretty steady, and as you go past the 14% sign there&amp;rsquo;s a short piece of out the saddle work before you&amp;rsquo;re back seated again and spinning it out. Then the road bends left and the real hill starts. The steep bit comes in two waves with the second part being slightly less severe than the first, but as it naturally comes after the first it doesn&amp;rsquo;t feel a lot better. My max HR on the bike is 179 and I hit 175 and 176 respectively on my two laps. Once the steep stuff&amp;rsquo;s over you continue to climb, but now you&amp;rsquo;re just spinning away.
R: The mere sight of the 14% sign had my HR climbing however it&amp;rsquo;s the pitch that kicks up that is that steep I am guessing, more time out of the saddle on the 27 got me hauled up to the top. With a highest HR recorded of 189 (95% MHR) 500ft of altitude has been gained back. Like the first main climb it&amp;rsquo;s the steep pitches that catch you out.
That climb

M: Once on the downhill you can pick up speed quite quickly and again the road just opens up in front of you, but as soon as the road starts to climb, get in the small ring and start spinning or you&amp;rsquo;ll get caught out (as I did on the first lap). You get to the top of this incline at Haddon Cross and then you&amp;rsquo;ve got a nice long downhill piece coming up. The worst is over.
The downhill gets as steep as 17% and unfortunately you don&amp;rsquo;t get to take full advantage of it due to the narrow nature of the bends and poor road surface. Then you&amp;rsquo;re left with about a 3km climb to the end of the lap. There&amp;rsquo;s nothing nasty about this last climb, it just comes at the end of the lap after a lot of hard climbing and you&amp;rsquo;ll need to get spinning again.
At the end of the second lap you turn back down the road to the lake. You obviously already know this piece of road from the other direction, but it&amp;rsquo;s a lot more fun on the way home. The lake road was a little unstable at speed as there was a bit of a crosswind, then there&amp;rsquo;s a short climb and you&amp;rsquo;re back at the entrance to transition.
R: Make the most of the downhill run into the lake (you drop around 500ft again) Enjoy the views, get a drink, but don&amp;rsquo;t however switch off. There is one final climb before transition, which will shake you from your revelry.

Left turn [8]

M: In all I found the course quite good. The road surface was poor in places, but the majority was OK. The first two thirds of the lap are pretty quick and I was able to stay in the big ring for a very long time that came as a nice surprise. The last third is hilly and nasty and needs to be taken gently the first time round. The hills are definitely steep, but with the exception of the 14% climb they&amp;rsquo;re all pretty short. Oh, and if you get the chance to look, the scenery&amp;rsquo;s wonderful.
R: I finally realised I had not bitten off more than I can chew! I will get round this course, lumpy though it is. The road conditions are no worse than those around the Surrey Hills lanes and the scenery is stunning. Be prepared to work hard on the second half of the lap and if, like me it&amp;rsquo;s your first attempt at a 70.3 maybe pack a 27, or even a compact. They won&amp;rsquo;t suffer from lack of use!.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Nokia Windsor Triathlon: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_1998.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[With the Nokia Windsor Triathlon coming up shortly (13th June 2010), after a wonderful ride in the Sunday sun I was reminded of what a fantastic bike course Windsor is. Perfect timing to revisit one of our most popular Garmin Route of the Month features as you fine tune your preparations for the big day. 

This month we take in a classic ride round the Berkshire countryside: the Nokia Windsor Triathlon bike course. Starting and finishing at the foot of Windsor Castle, it seems a deceptively easy ride but there&#039;s over 900 feet of elevation to be gained along the way which can put a dent in those legs before you tackle the run up Castle Hill three times!
The route was ridden for us by Tri247&#039;s editor, John Levison, along with Hillingdon Triathletes club mates Dave Wardle and Steve Gardner. Because the event has both a full distance and a sprint distance race they broke the bike route down into three sections using the Garmin&#039;s lap function so while the standard distance course is all three &#039;laps&#039;,  the sprint distance is only lap 1 plus lap 3.



A full map of the course is available on the Human Race website as a downloadable PDF and we have also processed the Garmin route into a KML file that you can load into Google Earth for a full &amp;quot;fly through&amp;quot;.

Section 1 (all) 
The bike route starts on a mount line in Goswell Road, immediately outside the main gates to Alexandra Gardens and goes under the Slough to Windsor railway bridge to the King Edward Court roundabout. During the race riders returning from the course will be coming across the roundabout as well so you will need to watch the other approach for oncoming bikes. Turn right at the roundabout heading away from the town down Arthur Road. There are two sets of lights along here, both will be controlled on race day, before you reach the Windsor Relief Road. Go across the roundabout and pick up the A308 Maidenhead Road.

100 yards into the road, just past the petrol station, there is a mini roundabout with a raised kerb which needs to be taken sensibly.

Once past this you can put the hammer down and head out past the Windsor Racecourse, the Squires garden centre roundabout and then on past Bray Studios towards the M4 and Maidenhead. This section is slightly up hill all the way and is fairly open and exposed -- you are heading into any prevailing wind. Once through Bray there is a mini roundabout under the M4 and then you come to the roundabout at the end of the A303M spur. Take the first exit which is the A330 Ascot Road. On race day the roundabout is often coned to allow bikes a clear run through but obviously traffic coming from the right does have priority!!

The road rises at this point to cross back over the M4 and then drops down into Holyport. The road is fairly narrow here and there are several bends where you might be tempted to pass using the &amp;quot;wrong&amp;quot; side of the road - remember that the course is open to traffic and if you can&#039;t see what&#039;s coming then it&#039;s foolish to be tempted. Leaving Holyport behind the road climbs gently through Stud Green and then crosses the ridge to drop back down to the end of the section at the Drift Road roundabout.

Section 2 (full only) 
Full distance athletes will go straight across here on the A330 while the sprint distance course turns left into Drift Road and heads for home. If you look left during the race you will see other bikes approaching the roundabout coming up Drift Road but you have about 7&amp;frac12; miles to go before you get to that point!

The full distance course is now heading to the top of the hill and, although it&#039;s hardly a climb in any real sense, there&#039;s a definite feeling that Windsor&#039;s course is nowhere near as flat as you may have first thought. After the first climb there&#039;s a great downhill section with an &#039;S&#039; bend at the bottom and then it&#039;s straight into a second short climb before dropping down into Maidens Green. This section is like a roller coaster and you want to be carrying momentum rather than struggling so keep the cadence going rather than backing off on the two descents.

As soon as you see the Maidens Green sign on the left-hand verge get ready to turn hard left into Winkfield Lane. If the road conditions allow, you will benefit from being as near the centre line as is safely possible to open up the turn but do remember that you need to stay on the left-hand side of the road after the turn -- ending up as a hood ornament on an oncoming car won&#039;t be any fun...

Winkfield Lane winds through more countryside and has the interesting quirk of not having a central white line for much of its length - however, with numerous properties and small turnings on either side it&#039;s best to keep clearly on the left. Like much of the road around the area it has suffered over the winter and a recent programme of maintenance has left a patchwork of repairs and different surfaces. At the end of Winkfield Lane you will come to a T junction with bikes passing from left to right in front of you. They are on their way home, you will be turned left to head into the infamous Drift Road section.

  
    
    
  

&amp;nbsp;
Drift Road gets its infamy from the fact that, if groups are going to form then this is where it will happen! The road is now generally descending and it&#039;s easy to pick up free speed -- although there are a couple of nasty tight bends -- and, because there are bikes now coming towards you on the other side of the road groups tend to form and then disperse down this section. Because of this, the referees often set up static draftbusters along the road and will catch you both coming and going -- the penalty boards are usually well populated at Windsor!

As you reach the bottom of the slope it becomes very obvious that you&#039;re going to have to pay back that free speed as the road now climbs in a series of small humps before flattening out on the approach to the roundabout that you passed just over 7 miles ago. About 50 metres before the roundabout there is a small layby and here you will be turned through 180&amp;deg; and sent on your way back down Drift Road.

Section 3 (all) 
Anyone doing the sprint distance course and all the full distance riders are now on the same route heading back first down the humps and then  up the steady drag towards the end of Drift Road. At the T junction you will make a left and about 100m later you will enter a roundabout. The sight lines here are not brilliant and although the whole roundabout is marshalled you need to be aware that the major traffic will becoming from your right and has the right of way. Taking care not to cut too close to the central island (that will put you on completely the wrong line for the exit and you&#039;ll clip that nasty little kerb) you take the second exit and head up the last climb of the day, Mount Hill. Once again, this really isn&#039;t much of a climb in real terms but. once it&#039;s done you know that it is, literally, all downhill from here to the end of the bike section.

  
    
    
  
  
    
    
  

Taking the first exit from the roundabout the road slowly opens out into the Great Park and, if you have the time or the inclination, you can see right across to the Castle, Heathrow, Slough and, on a clear day, pretty much into Central London. The road starts to drop away and you can build up an impressive speed down this section. There is a set of traffic lights here for horses to cross the road so don&#039;t assume you&#039;ll have the right of way if they go red! The road does kick up slightly but you should be going fast enough that you don&#039;t even notice and then it flattens out heading straight into the town with the Castle dead ahead. At the &#039;kidney shaped&#039; roundabout you keep to the left, sweeping past Princess Margaret&#039;s Hospital before entering the tricky one way section. As soon as it&#039;s safe you need to move to the right-hand lane as it curves up and round the flats and through another set of lights before dropping back to the Alma Road roundabout.

  
    
    
  

Take the second exit off the roundabout into Alma Road and go past the Police station to the traffic lights where you will be directed right into Clarence Street and then left into Charles Street. You are now approaching the King Edwards Court roundabout and will have other cyclists on the roundabout going right to left in front of you. You need to effectively go straight across and back under the railway arch in Goswell Road.
The bike course doesn&#039;t end on the road, however, as on race day you will turn hard left into Alexandra Gardens on the pavement (there is a ramped entrance) and then follow the tarmac path round the outside of transition to the dismount point at the far end.

Aftermath
Windsor has loads of nice little coffee shops to revive you after the ride; Barry&#039;s Caf&amp;eacute; in Barry Avenue by the River Thames on the other side of Alexandra Gardens is also a traditional meeting place for people doing the route.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Gower Duathlon: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_5549.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[With the inaugural Gower Duathlon this weekend, it&#039;s a perfect time to preview the eagerly  anticipated bike course in detail with our latest Garmin Route of the Month. 
Billed as one of the most stunning bike and  run courses ever seen in the UK,  the event is the first of its kind in the British Summer &amp;ndash; a multisport  festival targeted specifically at duathletes.
The route was ridden for us  by DB Max&#039;s Will Whitmore and the bike route information  is split into three sections to cover both the sprint and the long course bike  legs.

FRF Mazda Gower Duathlon Course 



Prostate UK Gower Srint Duathlon Course 

Section One (All)
The bike leg starts as you leave transition in the beautiful Rhossili village and head out onto the only exit road (B4247), leaving Worm&#039;s Head and Rhossili Bay  behind you for now. A fast and undulating start to the course which is pretty  much straight until the 2.7-mile (4.2k) mark where you meet your first left hand bend.
There&#039;s a right hand bend at  the 3-mile mark and then it&#039;s straight and fast until the T-Junction near Port Eynon.

  
    
    
  

Turn left and join the A4118 towards  Swansea. Fast  and flat road here with right hand bends at 4.2 miles and 4.6 miles. Follow  the A4118 until the 5.5 mile point before taking the right turn towards  Reynoldston.

  
    
    
  

Time to climb now! This narrower  road takes you over a cattle grid at 5.9 miles and through the village of Reynoldston, bearing right as you climb  up towards Cefn Bryn.
At 6.3 miles the sprint and  long course divide. The sprint competitors turn right with their climb complete,  whilst the long course duathletes head on up to the summit and the highest  point in the Gower.

  
    
    
  

Section Two (Long Course)
On reaching the brow of the  hill at 7.2 miles, suck in the air, take in the view and anticipate the 1.4 miles of descent you now have ahead of you. A long, fast road with grassland  either side and the whole road visible for miles ahead at various points on  this downhill section.

At 8.6 miles it&#039;s a left turn  at the T-Junction (note the sheep and wild horses), over the cattle grid at  8.85 miles and just keep on pedalling until you see the Esso garage on your  right hand side and the estuary ahead in the distance as you approach a  T-Junction (9.75 miles).

Take the left turn signposted  Llangennith (those running the &amp;lsquo;Monster&amp;rsquo; on the Sunday will have cause to  remember that name) then follow the road ahead. Bear left at the 10.5 mile  point towards Burry Green (pictured). 

  

    
  
  
    
  


Look out for the right hand  bend at 11.6 miles which marks the start of a downhill section with  a left hand bend shortly after and a right hand bend at the bottom. 
Keep right at the bottom of  the descent (pictured) and head up through the woods for half a mile.
Take the right turn towards  Burry at 12.4 miles (pictured) and head down towards the woods.
At the 12.7 mile point take  the left turn towards Fairy Hill (pictured).

  
    
    
  
  
    
    
  

Head down to the T-Junction and take the  right turn towards Reynoldston.

Enjoy the views if you can as you cycle  across the moor land with a bit of a climb up to the cattle grid (13.2 miles)  and then an undulating route which takes you back to the point where the Sprint  Course riders split off earlier.
At the 14.1 mile point just after a small  village it&amp;rsquo;s a left turn at the T-Junction and then an almost immediate right  turn.

  
    
    
  

Section Three (All)
The right turn is signposted  Port Eynon (pictured) with a fairly fast, gentle downhill to follow which takes  you over a cattle grid just before the T-Junction and the &amp;lsquo;foot down&amp;rsquo; right  turn (15 miles Long, 11.4k Sprint).

Turn  right (signposted Knelston) and join the A4118 which will take you all the way  back to the point where you joined it earlier &amp;ndash; 2.5 miles of hard and fast  cycling!


After  left hand bends at the 16.6 mile (14k sprint) and 17 mile point (14.6k sprint),  turn right at the 17.5 mile point (15.4k sprint), back onto the B4247 towards  Rhossili (pictured).
You&amp;rsquo;ll  recognise this fast and winding road with a right hand bend at 18.5 miles (17k  sprint) and then a left hand one at 19.9 miles (19.3k sprint) before a fairly  long downhill section.

  
    
    
  


A  slight climb back to the village   of Rhossili, with a left  hand turn as you enter the village and head back down to transition.
Take  care on this final approach on the village road, but prepare yourself for your  dismount and then the stunning views on your final run towards Worms Head and the  cliffs of Fall Bay and Mewslade. 21 miles done for the  long course duathletes or 21k for the sprint!]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Northants Ultra 34: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_5318.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[We&#039;ve got something completely different for you this time in our Garmin Route of the Month series. Triathletes are no strangers to &#039;going long&#039;, with many Ironman athletes regularly scheduling in stand alone marathons as part of their preparations. However, what about going a little longer on the run?
Go Beyond (www.gobeyondultra.co.uk), organise a number of challenging, off-road, single day and multi-stage running events for those looking for &amp;quot;more variation, greater challenges but still retain the competitive element.&amp;quot;
This weekend (7th June) it&#039;s the Go Beyond Northants Ultra (Shires and Spires), &amp;quot;a 34 mile loop taking in some of the most interesting country houses and   historical sites in England and as well as Lamport includes Naseby, Althorp   (home of the Spencer family), Cottesbrooke,&amp;nbsp;evidently the house&amp;nbsp;Jane Austen used   as the basis for&amp;nbsp;Mansfield Park and Kelmarsh Hall as well some stunning   countryside.&amp;quot;
We&#039;ve seen a trend for Ironman athletes  to be attracted to events like these. Toby Radcliffe from Team Timex, (sixth in Ironman UK last year) for example, recently won the 85km Nove Colli Run in Italy. Perhaps this can inspire you to &#039;go ultra&#039;?! 


  
  
  

  
    
    The race starts in the beautiful grounds of Lamport Hall, and  quickly heads east across sheep grazing fields towards Cottesbrooke Hall. 
  


  
    Look left as you run or walk the quiet country lane and you will be treated to an avenue of trees framing the house where evidently Jane Austin took her inspiration for the book Mansfield Park. 
    Again sheep are you companions as you run through the impressive gated grounds which present a &ldquo;nice&rdquo; hill to get the heart rate up, and offer a lovely panorama of the rolling Northamptonshire countryside as you climb towards Haselbech.
    
  


  
    
    You then turn east onto a short road section which takes you to the historic village of Naseby, site of the great Cromwellian  battle in 1645 and through the village, to more lovely villages of Thornby and on through undulating countryside to      West Haddon and the equestrian centre at Silsworth Lodge, where they also      make some of the finest saddles in England. 
  



The route then heads south to the pretty but bustling village of Long Buckby and then onto English countryside for which Northamptonshire does not really get full credit. You then head south to the pretty Great Brington and through a tree lined avenue framing the runners first view of the home of the Spencer family, Althorp. 
As you run round the perimeter wall of the estate there are some fantastic views not only of the House but the surrounding countryside too. The route takes in almost all of the estates southern perimeter before heading off to Harlestone and the run through the inevitable golf course.

  
    
    Just across the Northamptonshire fields from Althorp lies  Holdenby House, a&amp;nbsp;stately home&amp;nbsp;whose royal connections go back over  400 years. Built by Sir Christopher Hatton to entertain Elizabeth I, it became  the Palace of James I and the prison of his son,  Charles I. Now a family home, the house is&amp;nbsp;the splendid backdrop to a  beautiful garden.
    The course continues north to Teeton and Teeton Hall before      heading to the historical village       of Creaton, via a      very undulating country lane and the lovely Highgate House just one more      example of the beauty in the architecture available in this pretty county.
  

The final stage of our journey takes us through more fields past  the village of Hanging Houghton and onto the Midshires Way  section of the Brampton Valley Way  and back to Lamport Hall. 
Just over thirty four miles of lovely running in  spectacular surroundings.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[DragonSlayer Duathlon: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4994.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[So far this year in our Garmin Route of the Month series we&#039;ve featured the Club La Santa Mini Duathlon, the Saucony TCR 10km Run and the Sevenoaks Sprint Triathlon. 
Our feature this month is both a duathlon event, and a training and cycle race venue. The DragonSlayer Duathlon is hosted by East London Triathletes (www.eastlondontriathletes.co.uk), and for 2009 takes place on Sunday 19th April at the new Redbridge Cycling Centre (www.redbridgecyclingcentre.co.uk). Also known as &#039;Hog Hill&#039;, the purpose-built 2km circuit was built as a replacement for &#039;The Eastway&#039;, as part of the Olympic 2012 development. The Eastway was where the DragonSlayer first started, before re-locating to Stubbers Outdoor Centre in Upminster, briefly becoming an off-road triathlon, and now returning to it&#039;s roots as a cycle circuit based duathlon. 
The route was ridden for us and photographed by East London Triathletes member Stelios Marcou.
Here&#039;s all you need to know about the circuit, whether it&#039;s for the DragonSlayer itself, or perhaps some road racing? 


  

After a 7km off road run you will be taking on 20 laps of the Hog Hill circuit to complete your 40km. Each lap is 2km in length. The track is in fantastic condition  as it is less than six months old and therefore provides a high grip tarmac surface,  but you better bring your bike legs with you come race day as the course is  quite demanding. Good cyclists will be ok with an 11-23 rear cassette but those  not as strong would be advised to sport a 12-25.

  
    Start/Finish line, leading to turn one 
  
  
    
    
  

The start line is on a slight uphill, 1-2% gradient but I  would advise being in a relatively big gear early on as the first half  of the circuit is the quickest. The first corner comes at you after about 75m,  there are a series of two corners here, a double left hander, stay wide  if possible to cut in and take the racing line but definitely have a quick  glance over your left shoulder before you dive in and commit to it as there is  an obvious overtaking point here. Excellent bike handling skills are key on  turn one if you want to nail this corner to carry speed through turn two.  These first two corners are quick as you will be travelling down a hill of  approx 8% gradient.
You should be carrying quite a lot of momentum through  the second &amp;nbsp; corner which you will want to maintain, even bigger  gear now as things will be getting faster&amp;hellip; turn three is an open left hand  turn and four is a long downhill sweeper. This is the fastest part of the  circuit!

  
    Site overview, plus turns three and four
  
  
    
    
  


You will have now dropped onto the lower part of the track  and things level out. Try and carry as much speed as possible for the descent  as turn five is a right hander which is fairly open so with the right line you  won&#039;t need to scrub any speed off, same for turn 6. You are then faced with a  hair pin which is fairly open and turn nine is a long sweeping left hander. You  will now be on the back straight which is pretty flat and fast. Turn ten is long  sweeping left hander too. 
Ok now things begin to change, you will notice a slight rise  in gradient, nothing drastic to begin with between 1-3%. Start thinking about  getting into an appropriate gear. There is a gradual gain in incline as you  pass through turn 11 where the gradient kicks up to around 6-7%. Coming up to  turn 12 you will be at the peak of the ascent and the gradient is approx 12%.  As you go over the brow you will see the start/finish line which is about 50m  away.

  
    Turn 12... steep uphill to start/finish line
  
  
    
    
  


Now to find those run legs for the final 5km effort...
]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[7Oaks Sprint  Triathlon: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4921.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[So far this year in our Garmin Route of the Month series we&#039;ve featured the Club La Santa Mini Duathlon and the Saucony TCR 10km Run. 
This month we month we return to triathlon fare, with the bike course from the 7Oaks Tri Club Sprint Triathlon (www.7oakstriclub.co.uk). The 7Oaks event is held twice yearly, in April and September. The 2009 dates are April 19th and September 20th, though the April event was full last December! The event is building a deserved reputation as being one of the most professionally run &#039;club&#039; events on the circuit, with a range of sponsors, prizes and a packed goodie-bag that would put almost any event to shame. 
Stick around for the prize giving (even if you don&#039;t win...), as someone is going to walk away with a free holiday and a new laptop. But, if you aren&#039;t there, you can&#039;t win.
Here&#039;s all you need to know to maximise your performance on the 7Oaks bike course. 


  

Leaving Sevenoaks Leisure Centre, turn right into Suffolk Way  and at the traffic lights just round the corner turn left (subject to a green light) and head up the High Street, climbing gradually.
You will pass the local bike shop  &amp;ldquo;Bikes, Bikes, Bikes&amp;rdquo; on the right and a bit further on, the road bends to the  left and goes downhill for a short while as you pass Sevenoaks School on the left. The road soon becomes Tonbridge  Road and you will find yourself having to work a bit harder now for the next mile or so as you are climbing when you pass the White Hart Pub on the right.
At around the 2-mile point you will pass St Julian Road on  the left and begin your steep descent down Riverhill towards Hildenborough. Take Care!
This is a rapid descent  incorporating a couple of long sweeping fast bends. If you know the road you  may be confident enough to forget about the brakes to gain a few seconds, if  you don&amp;rsquo;t know the road it may come as a surprise and you will want to use your brakes!
After the two bends, the road  straightens out but you are still descending fairly sharply until Riverhill  becomes London Road  at the slip road from the major roundabout where traffic from the A21 joins the  B245. At this point you keep left following the sign to Hildenborough - B245.

  
    Keep left to Hildenborough. Pass the Church.
  
  
    
    
  

Take Care! You may have to give way  in 100 yards to fast moving traffic coming off the A21 from your right.
Keep heading south along London Road towards  Hildenborough. You will find yourself getting a good speed up along this road  for a couple of miles until just after the Church on the left in Hildenborough  where you turn left along Riding    Lane. 
James Millard Estate Agents are  on the corner and you need to follow the sign to Shipbourne. You have now  covered just less than 5-miles.
At  this point you turn left into much quieter and more rural roads where you follow  a very scenic route.
Your first mile along Riding Lane is  fairly flat but gradually you will find yourself ascending but nothing too  severe. About a mile along Riding    Lane there is a sharp bend to the left, just  before Hildenbrook Farm on the right. Towards the end of Riding Lane the incline increases a  little so you will have to work a bit harder. At the end of Riding Lane you come to a junction where  you turn right into Hildenborough    Road following signs to Shipbourne.
The road surface for the first  half a mile along Hildenborough    Road is not brilliant so take a little care. You  will be climbing slightly here but the surface soon improves and the road  levels out as well to allow a decent turn of speed to where the road meets the  Ightham Road (A227). At this junction you have travelled just over 8-miles and are now in the village   of Shipbourne. The next  mile and a half is probably the most challenging part of the course.
Turn left opposite the School and  head up Stumble Hill which means a short sharp climb of 200 yards to take you  to the top and the Chaser Inn on your left and common on your right. 

  
    Chaser Inn to the left, Common to the right.
  
  
    
    
  

The road levels out and  then descends only to rise again temporarily and then again levels out. Don&amp;rsquo;t  be deceived, the real work starts now, a mile of climbing, with the steepest at  the beginning then near the top of the hill. 
When you see the sign to Plaxtol on  your right you are almost there but it gets steeper as the road bends to the  left. You have to work really hard here, wishing for it to end and when you see  the sign for Ightham Mote on the left you know you are at the top. What a  relief!

  

  
      
  
  
    
    
  

Take the next left along High Cross Road to  Ivy Hatch at just under 10-miles. This road is flat and allows some  recovery after the hill. After half a mile you reach Ivy Hatch and will see the  Plough PH. 
Keep this on your right and take  the next left turning to Stone    Street along Stone Street Road where after half a  mile of undulating road you will reach The Snail. The Snail is more of a  restaurant than a Pub for all you fine food lovers.
At the Snail keep left and follow  the sign to Bitchett Green and Riverhill. You will find this mile and a half  stretch of road undulating, narrow in places with some short sharp descents,  climbs and sharps bends thrown in as well. This is probably the most technical  part of the route and if you can, at least have a trial run on this road before  racing along it.
You will encounter a fairly steep  descent about a mile from The Snail, followed by two sharp right hand bends and  immediately a short steep climb. You need to be in the right gear!

  
    Sharp right bend, then right at crossroads
  
  
    
    
  

You encounter very similar about  half a mile further on although only one bend this time. Just before this bend  the road surface as you descend is not that great on the left for 10 yards or so. Take care! You will now be at some  crossroads and need to turn right to Godden Green.
The next mile is fast, you pass Sevenoaks Preparatory School on your left (where  the Kent Sportive starts in September) and head into Godden Green passing the Bucks Head PH on your left. 
Take the next left into Blackhall Lane  signposted to Sevenoaks. At this point you have completed 13 miles.&amp;nbsp; 
The next mile or so is flat so  relax until you reach the junction with Seal Hollow Road (14.5 miles).
Turn left up Seal Hollow Road towards Sevenoaks. Only a mile to go now but you will be climbing most of the way and unfortunately it  gets steeper until you reach the High Street. As you climb up towards the finish you will have to decide whether to go all out or do you save something  for the run?

  
    Vine Cricket Club and Sevenoaks High Street
  
  
    
    
  


By the time you pass Sevenoaks  Vine Cricket Club on the right and reach the High Street, the road will have levelled and you&#039;ll be thinking about transition.
Keep an eye out for traffic  coming from the right when you join the High Street temporarily before turning  left at the traffic lights back into Suffolk Way and then into the car park at  the Leisure Centre. You will have covered approx 15.5  miles.
The course has everything,  country roads, main roads, rapid descents with fast tight bends, long climbs,  short, sharp climbs and descents with sharp bends between. Don&#039;t forget the tough final mile. Something for everyone and if you want to enjoy it, the  countryside is great as well!]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Saucony 10km Garmin route]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4731.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[A &#039;bonus&#039; Garmin route for you this week.
The Saucony 10km was held at the TCR Show last weekend, and for those that ran and are interested in the various course statistics, we&#039;ve got a full Garmin download of the event, courtesy of competitior Andrew Biggs, below. 

  

The organisers, One Step Beyond Promotions (www.onestepbeyond.org.uk),  did a great job in actually getting the event to go ahead at all, having to completely change the planned course at short notice due to the recent snow and ice. Their efforts proved worthwhile however, as close to 300 athletes lined up to race, the event being won by Adam Bowden (Harrow AC/Team Fusion) and Rachel Joyce (thetrilife.com). 
Appropriately, both athletes are now triathlon specialists, with Adam recently turning his attentions from the 3000m steeplechase, where he is reigning AAA&#039;s champion, to triathlon, and Rachel racing as a professional at Ironman distance, her first big event of the year being Ironman South Africa in April, having finished fifth at Ironman Florida at the end of 2008. 
We&#039;ve got interviews with both of them coming up soon on the site. 
Formula one driver Jenson Button continued to show his enjoyment of and commitment to triathlon and running competition by taking part, finishing in a very commendable 38:27. 
&amp;nbsp;
&amp;nbsp;]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Route of the Month: Club La Santa Mini Duathlon]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4593.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[We&#039;re going overseas with our Garmin Route of the Month this time - we need some sun! 
While it&#039;s cold, wet and icy in the UK at this time of year, there are plenty of athletes seeking some winter sunshine, to get onto the roads without three layers of thermals. Arguably the most popular training venue in the world for triathletes is the sports paradise of Club La Santa (www.clublasanta.co.uk), on the north west coast of Lanzarote. We are certainly fans of La Santa (check out our in-depth review here), and it even has a dedicated section on the site.
The Club La Santa Mini Duathlon  and takes place every week, so whenever you plan on going, you can have a go at this event.
2008 was the 25th anniversary of Club La Santa&#039;s opening, and in that time it has played host to many of the top names in triathlon. In recent weeks double World Ironman Champion Chrissie Wellington has been preparing for her 2009 season there. However, you don&#039;t have to be an elite athlete to enjoy your stay. 
The Mini Duathlon takes place every Monday (7.45am), starting and finishing at the athletics stadium on site. (Note, you can also race an aquathlon every Monday at 2pm, and a triathlon every Wednesday morning at 7.45am. For more information on these, and the complete weekly events schedule, check out this link). 

The event  is open to all Club La Santa guests. Entry is free, however to secure your place you need to book in advance. Bookings for the race are via the Sports Booking Office. If you are planning to use one of the complimentary road bikes for the race, you should book this at the same time. We would suggest booking upon arrival, rather than waiting until the last minute, in order to secure your spot. 



The event takes place over published distances of 2.5km run / 14.8km cycle / 2.5km run. As a sprint race, it is open to all from complete novices to experienced athletes, perhaps even the odd pro. Don&#039;t feel out of your depth, everyone is welcomed. 
The start, finish and transition for the event are at the athletics stadium. Conveniently, this is also where the Bike Centre is located. Since Club La Santa hire out bikes free of charge (remember to reserve yours), collect your bike before the race. 


 Birds eye view of Club La Santa

  
    
  


Before the event, one of the Green Team  will take a register of those attending, give a quick race briefing and issue you with your timing chip. Chip timing means a fast results service - something we appreciate. 
The run starts on the 400m tartan track, near to the finish line and proceeds clockwise (the wrong way) for around 300m. You are then directed out of the far gate where you turn right and out of the Club La Santa complex. Follow the path for around 1km to the turnaround point,  then re-trace your steps back to to the stadium. Enter the the athletics track through the same gate, then run 300m anti-clockwise (the right way), on the track to collect your bike.

  
    Matt Molloy in race action at Club La Santa
  
  
    
    
  

You pass under the Meta Tower (finish line arch for events) when finishing the first run. The timing chip mat means that your run times are true, with both transitions included within your cycle split. 
Exit the stadium through the near gate this time, and mount your bike on the road. Turn right (remember to stay on the right hand side of the road!), then bear right at the roundabout along the typically quiet rode towards La Santa village. The first 2km is flat, but make the most of it as any route out of the complex will involve hills and wind. Heading through La Santa village, there are a couple of large speed bumps which require attention, before starting a steady climb of 5km. This is the defining factor of the event - check out the Garmin profile for more detail - and you will be pleased when you reach the turnaround in Tinajo. 
An out-and-back course, what goes up, must come down, however don&#039;t expect an easy ride back, since the relentless winds typically mean that a hard effort is still required.
Re-enter transition through the near gate and repeat the run, finishing under the Meta Tower. Race over! Time for breakfast, an easy spin on the bike and the back in time for the afternoon aquathlon... 
Event results should be available shortly afterwards from the Sports Booking Office, and an on site photographer will produce pictures to buy on CD later from the shop. 
In summary, this informal but well organised event is a great way to get in some speedwork and relaxed competition around your other training. With the event having a standard format and course, you can also compare your times from week-to-week or year-on-year. 
&amp;nbsp;
We recorded the route using a Garmin Forerunner 305, and recorded the actual distances of the event as:

  
    Discipline
    Distance
  
  
    Run One 
    2.72km 
  
  
    Cycle
    14.44km
    
  
  
    Run Two 
    2.76km
  

For more information on facilities, bookings and training camps at Club La Santa, check out www.clublasanta.co.uk or email reservations@clublasanta.co.uk. ]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Cliveden Cross Country: Garmin Route of the Month]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4262.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[To this point, our Garmin Route of the Month feature has focussed primarily upon the cycle sections of various triathlon and duathlon events. Now that we are (almost), in the multisport off-season, we thought we would change tack this month and focus on a pure running event. And nothing quite spells winter running in the UK like a good cross country event - and this really is a good one! 

The Cliveden Cross Country  is hosted by Burnham Joggers (www.burnhamjoggers.org.uk) on the Sunday between Christmas Day and New Year, and this year falls on Monday 29th December 2009. Take note though - there are no entries on the day, and the race is always over-subscribed, typically full by mid-November. 

Cliveden is part of The National Trust, and is located in Taplow, Maidenhead, Berkshire and easily accessible from the M40 (junction 4) or M4 (junction 7). Central to the magnificent grounds which overlook the River Thames is Cliveden House, infamously associated with the &#039;Profumo Affair&#039;.

This Italianate mansion, built in 1851 by architect Charles Barry, is now leased as an exclusive private hotel (www.clivedenhouse.co.uk), and is set in 376 acres of formal gardens and parkland, and the stunning house forms the backdrop to the start of the race.

The Garmin trace below is from the 2007 event, run by Tri247&#039;s Editor, John Levison. Typically there will be minor changes year-on-year, depending upon works being undertaken within the grounds and the state of the various parks and tracks used, though you can be certain that the signature element of the event - the 172 steps of Yew Tree Walk (which you run / suffer twice!) - will remain.  In fact, you&#039;ll probably be so shattered from running you won&#039;t notice most of the sights, so we&#039;ve captured them for you here. We recorded the distance as 10.6km in 2007, and that&#039;s fairly typical for the event.


Falling between Christmas and New Year, there is always a relaxed and fun atmosphere to the event.  It&#039;s also a popular event with triathletes in the region, with the likes of Berkshire, Eton, Hillingdon, Farnham and Thames Valley Triathletes typically well represented within the 500 starters. One triathlete who has done more than simply run Cliveden is twice winner (2005 and 2006), Mike Trees. A former professional duathlete and triathlete, Mike is perhaps best known now as the man behind the 2XU, Ceepo and Newton Running brands in the UK through his Triathlon Consultants distribution company. 

We spoke to Mike about his thoughts on the event; &amp;quot;It&#039;s a great event, unfortunately family commitments mean I won&#039;t be able to make it this year.&amp;quot; Any tips for the rest of us? &amp;quot;Don&#039;t go off too fast at the start, as it&#039;s flat/downhill initially, and you&#039;ve got the steps to come later. The steps are very awkward - try and relax, take short strides and ease off about 5% of your effort from the flat. It may seem slow, but it will help prevent the build up of lactic acid which is a real killer, and you&#039;ll more than make up for it on the rest of the course. Try and go for some lightweight, studded (not spikes, they are banned) off-road specific shoes with a waffle or similar style sole.&amp;quot;



Start is at the gates of Cliveden House, and you head down the driveway...

  
    
    
  


The start of the race is on firm, pan flat driveway directly in front of the house. After about 150 metres you bear right past the &#039;Fountain of Love&#039; which sits at the end of the drive. The road then narrows and you are directed left on to a pathway through and past the Water Gardens. Takes care here, as there are usually a few bollards which can cause problems. Don&#039;t be surprised or concerned to slow a little here due to congestion - remember Mike&#039;s tip that the start of the race is very fast - almost all of the first 2km is downhill, falling around 200 feet as you descend to the Thames-side path. 

Past the Fountain of Love
  
    
    
  

Of course, you may be thinking at this point that it&#039;s a really easy race. And, so far, it is... After 2km you descend sharply, and turn right onto the path that runs by the Thames. Concentrate, as it&#039;s bound to be slippery and muddy. Listen to the marshals who will highlight any obstacles. Of course, what goes down must go up, and pretty soon you will get your first glimpse of Yew Tree Walk. 


  
    
    
  
  
    
    
  


Yew Tree Walk - sounds so quaint and innocent doesn&#039;t it? Well, you&#039;ll soon find out that it is 172 steps of torture! Whoever designed the steps didn&#039;t like runners. Unless you are very strong, taking them one pace at a time is going to leave you bathing in a lactic acid lake, so probably best to take shorter strides and take two paces per step, at least for part of the climb. You&#039;ll also be delighted to note that some wag has been out and chalked the number left to go on the risers every few steps...


  
  
  Yew Tree Walk: view from the bottom up and top down! 
  
  If you look left just after the final step you will see the Octaganal Temple (Chapel)
  Even when you&#039;ve passed the steps, it&#039;s not flat yet...
  
    
    
  
  
    
    
  


If you look up to your right after the final step, (you are more likely to be staring at the floor in oxygen debt...), you can see the magnificent sight of Cliveden House. A final, still uphill, section will take you around the House, and back to the start for the end of one lap. However, don&#039;t think you are halfway at this point, &amp;quot;the second lap is actually longer than the first, and actually has a tougher hill in it than the first&amp;quot; says Mike Trees. He is right too, the first lap is typically just over 4km, but the second is over 6km...

Lap two starts in exactly the same way as lap one already described above, but the course then heads further to the south on the Estate before descending again to the Thames-side path. Look left and see the lovely surroundings. Footing here should be quite firm, and by this point you&#039;ll have forgotten about the steps. Then, at about 8km into the race you take a sharp right and head up. More steps, but this time while in aggregate not as long, the steps are less uniform and the hill far steeper. In fact, in all the times I&#039;ve done this event, it&#039;s always been the toughest part of the course. &amp;quot;Don&#039;t be embarrassed to use your hands on your knees and walk here - I won the event twice, and walked here both times!&amp;quot; said Mike.

This section always feels like a kick-in-the-teeth. They take you up a really tough climb from the river ... so that half a kilometre later they can send you back down again, ready to finish you off with another ascent of Yew Tree Walk! Once you hit the bottom step for the final time you have just under 1km to go, and it&#039;s almost all uphill. The finish line is located around 100 metres down the main drive in front of Cliveden House.

One of the great things about the race is The Orangery Caf&eacute;, which also doubles as somewhere to store your baggage pre-race. Plenty of quality cakes and post-race coffee available, I&#039;ll certainly be there. Apex Sports (www.apex-sports.co.uk) of Farnham Common will be on hand for pre- and post-event shopping, and you can usually find a bargain or two available.

This really is a challenging, but fun event and it&#039;s fantastically well organised. It&#039;s a real honour to run in such an environment and is highly recommended.]]></description></item><item><title><![CDATA[Is your PB* really a PB?]]></title><link><![CDATA[http://www.tri247.com/article_4236.html]]></link><description><![CDATA[(*PB = Personal Best)
One of the great things about modern technology is that you no longer have to guess how far you you have run or cycled. Gone are the days of &amp;quot;I ran for an hour, probably at around 7:30 / mile pace, so it was probably around eight miles.&amp;quot; As I&#039;ve found myself, I suspect most of my historic estimates may have somewhat over-stated my training miles covered...
Unlike most road running events, which are generally subject to certified course ratification processes (e.g. www.coursemeasurement.org.uk), very few, if any, triathlon events are subject to the same degree of measurement and public certification. To an extent, that&#039;s fine with me - it can often be practically difficult to find an exact 20km sprint triathlon bike route that just happens to start and finish exactly at transition. That said, I do expect courses to be broadly correct, and the more important the event, the more accurate they should be. Still, it always amazes me how many triathletes take split times quite so literally, claiming PB times and &amp;quot;awesome swim/bike/run splits&amp;quot; at events which, it&#039;s quite obvious (to me, anyway), are &#039;short&#039;. Similarly, I&#039;ve seen athletes seemingly on the edge of depression due to &amp;quot;shocking&amp;quot; run splits, when a simple glance at everyone elses times would quickly tell you that actually, they had done rather well! I&#039;m always surprised how  the vast majority of athletes I know haven&#039;t worked this out. Perhaps though, that&#039;s why I&#039;m sometimes known as &amp;quot;statto&amp;quot;...
Here&#039;s an example from a recent major international race which shows how a little modern technology and a bit of thought can bring some reality to a set of results (and perhaps prevent a few suicidal thoughts as people view their first run split!).  
Looking back at the recent World Age Group Duathlon results (AG ladies, AG men), from Rimini. Despite a seemingly pan flat course, some of the times recorded for athletes I know well, looked a little on the slow side relative to my understanding of their ability, so I thought I&#039;d see exactly how long the advertised 10km / 40km / 5km courses really were.
Tri247 columnist Colette O&#039;Neill raced in Rimini (seventh in AG40-44), and wore a Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS for the race. I&#039;ve been using this tool for over a year now, and it&#039;s also what we regularly use for our route of the month features. I&#039;ve found it to be incredibly accurate, and on several occasions I&#039;ve run in measured, certified accurate running races to record distances almost exactly to the metre in line with that published. 

   

Here are Colette&#039;s official times from the event, as recorded by the race chip timing. 

  
    Section
    Advertised distances
    Official Times
	Implied Pace
  
  
    1st Run 
    10km
    0:46:39
	 4:40/km or 7:30/mile 
  
  
    T1
    N/A
    0:00:56
	 N/A
  
  
    Bike
    40km
    1:16:02
	 31.6 km/h or 19.6 mph 
  
  
    T2
    N/A
    0:01:02
	 N/A
  
  
    2nd Run
    5km
    0:22:27
	 4:29/km or 7:13/mile 
  
  
    Total
    &amp;nbsp;
    2:27:09
	&amp;nbsp;
  

By her own admission, Colette felt terrible during the first run, but did she really go - for her - that slowly? The bike leg looks ok - though not spectacular, yet she seemingly ran faster on the second run. Does it all make sense? 
With the benefit of the motionbased trace uploaded from the Garmin 305, overlayed with the official timing splits, we can get a very accurate picture of the actual distances covered by Colette during all stages of the race. This provided the following revised information: 

  
    Section
    Advertised Distance 
    ACTUAL Distance 
    Official Times
    ACTUAL Pace
  
  
    1st Run 
    10km
    10.93km
    0:46:39
    4:16/km or 6:52/mile 
  
  
    T1
    N/A
    200m
    0:00:56
    N/A
  
  
    Bike
    40km
    42.40km
    1:16:02
    33.5 km/h or 20.8 mph 
  
  
    T2
    N/A
    250m
    0:01:02
    N/A
  
  
    2nd Run
    5km
    4.96km
    0:22:27
    4:32/km or 7:17/mile 
  
  
    Total
    &amp;nbsp;
    &amp;nbsp;
    2:27:09
    &amp;nbsp;
  


So what does this tell us?

The first run was almost 1km long (10.93km). The fastest female Age Grouper was Emma Dews, and her seemingly &#039;slow&#039; 39:11 split was actually worthy of a sub 36 minute 10km, on what was also a very twisty course. The fastest GB Male Age Grouper on the first run was David Roper (35:37). While most of us would be more than happy with that on an accurate course, in truth he was actually running at almost 32:30 pace! 
In Colette&#039;s case, the aim was for her to run at approx 4:15/km pace (42.30 for 10km), for the first run based on her fitness at that time. Despite feeling terrible on the run due to a stitch/cramp, looking back now she was almost spot on that planned schedule. Thus, what initially looks like a disaster, actually looks ok with a little more analysis and information.  
The bike leg was 2.4km (approx 1.5 miles), longer than the notional 40km, measured from mount line to dismount line. Emma Dews was also the fastest female cyclist (1:09:39), which would imply that she rode at 22.7 mph (36.5 km/h). The fastest GB Age Grouper was Dan Corner (1:03:41), which means he rode at 24.8 mph - and what&#039;s more, that included riding much of the final lap with a puncture! Remembering that the time also includes around 12 dead-turns or roundabouts, and speeding up/slowing down for mount and dismount, that is pretty damn fast off the back of a 34-minute equivalent 10km run, and with a fast 5km run still to go. 
The final  run was almost bang on the advertised 5km.  While her overall speed was much slower than she would have liked, Colette&#039;s second run was quite reasonable in relative terms, slowing by around 6% versus run one. By comparison, Emma Dews ran 18:50 for the - almost - 5km, and slowed by a similar percentage (3:35/km to 3:48/km) between the two runs. Looking at the men&#039;s times, David Roper completed the second run in 17:05 (3:27/km pace), which again is slightly less than 6% slower than the pace of his opening run (3:16). So, if you want to do well at duathlon, you can&#039;t expect to slow down much on that second run... 

Learning Points 

In most cases, triathlon courses are not subject to the degree of accuracy you would see at certified accurate running events. Therefore, don&#039;t take your split times too seriously.
Bear in mind too that even if a course is accurate, your split times can vary depending on how the timing was done, e.g. in the case of Rimini we have a &#039;pure&#039; running split, since transitions were timed separately, but that isn&#039;t always the case. Of course, if timing is done manually, your time is only as accurate as the time-keepers pencil! 
Split times can be very useful, though in my experience, measuring yourself in relative terms to your opposition or age group is far more valuable than the absolute time you recorded for a given discipline. 
If you have access to a Garmin, or similar GPS type tool - especially for duathlons - you can retrospectively make a better assessment of your performance against the actual course.  
For a duathlon, targetting your first run based on average pace (e.g. mins/km), can be a great aid, as it eliminates the course accuracy issue. 

Of course, you can do as much analysis as you want, but if you want to win a medal at the World Champs like Emma or David did, you need to run, bike and then run again damn fast, so maybe just forget all this analysis and get out and train! ]]></description></item></channel></rss>
