If you are looking for something a little different for next season, then the S’GRAIL100 could be for you. https://sgrail100.com/ 1500M swim – a beautiful sea swim in Med. Event buses left Girona center for Cadaques at 0630 for the start about an hours drive away. We had dropped off Read more
The journey started back in Ironman Lanzarote 2024 where I qualified in my age group for the World Championships which were going to be held in Nice, France, in September. Others close to me argued that the journey started in 2018 with my first Ironman in Bolton, UK and fast forward to my 6th IM in Lanzarote to qualify.
Arriving into a buzzing Nice on Thursday before race day which was on Sunday, the IM events were in full swing. Swim practice Friday morning, bike check and tiny cycle on a very busy promenade after and then plan to eat, hydrate and try to get off feet. The latter is so hard to do as there’s always walking involved. Went to the expo and had my bike checked by Canyon Team and listened to a few interviews with Joanne Murphy as the main IM announcer. Met fellow Irish competitors and had photos taken with the Irish flag, which was special. Usual bike check in and drop off of Run and Bike bags the day before and you’re done. It always blows my mind when you see all the bikes lined up the day before. I spotted Chelsea Sodaro and Fenella Langridge, two of the pro athletes.
Race Day: Sleep was sketchy the night before. I have been awake since 2.30 but when I got up I felt rested and had some good nights sleep previously. Breakfast of Rice Krispies, bread and Jam…..again!
Swim. Plan: Settle into a rhythm from the start stay relaxed and try to stay on course and not add too much extra distance. It was an in-water start with your age group instead of your predicted time. The seconds before the starter gun were filled with shouts of ‘good luck ladies’ from fellow competitors. Starter gun… this is it I’m doing it! Nothing dramatic in the swim. Conditions were good but the fact that it was wetsuit legal meant that anything was going to be a bonus rather than swimming in skins. The water is pristine aqua blue and very salty. Ticked off the bouys one by one. Twice I heard/felt the rumble of the speedy swimmers as they were moving in a pack and past. Lots of bunching up here, elbows and kicking feet dodging at its best. Swimming conditions were good but still a fine chop once you went out beyond 300 meters. Kept reminding myself to take the time to sight. Eventually the finish buoys were in sight and swim time was 1hr 30 minutes. Cool to have volunteers help take the wetsuit off you and I randomly had a Kerry girl. ‘Come on Limerick’ she said. I was happy with my swim time as I was fresh getting out and not cold for change.
Bike: Piece de la resistance. This bike course is famous for its beauty, spectacular scenery and on equal terms the challenge of the climbs with varying gradients from 5% to 12% and the length of the climbs, Col de L’Ecrue being one of them for 23km.
Plan: Again stay relaxed, focus on nutrition, fluids and most of all enjoy this bike. It did not disappoint. The views are breathtaking on the climbs. I just found my tempo and kept steady, no surging, no looking at what someone else was doing. I felt super good climbing and even though I was thinking that the descending would be a nice break, in hindsight I was more comfortable on the climbing sections. I chose to stop a few times to refuel with what I was carrying and was happy to let the women who were around me to move on. It wasn’t till coming to the last of the major climbs I realized I was making my way back to them each time. Finally you reach the top or plateau, as you think! ‘Ah TT time’ however this section is deceivingly false flat and rolling, and at this point we were faced with a strong headwind. ‘Stay aero and be patient’
Each year I try to do a home race that I haven’t done before. I had heard great reports of the Tyrone event and it fitted into my summer plans.. The race has been run for about 10 years, played host to the National Championships and has been voted race Read more
A busy month started with the Great Limerick Run, where LTC were out in force across all the distances – Marathon, Half Marathon & 6 mile. Next up was IM 70.3 Mallorca, with a great crew making the trip to Alcudia for one of the biggest 70.3’s in Europe. Well Read more
The inaugural running of Ironman 70.3 Valencia took place on 21st April 2024. John Culleton, Jack Dineen and I represented Limerick Tri. Valencia is a beautiful city, a real mixture of historic buildings and fantastic modern architecture. Easy to get around with dedicated cycle lanes, the metro or just walking. Read more
The clue is in the name – it is a hard race. Unlike its branded counterparts, it’s quite basic – you are almost on your own out there, without the luxury of closed roads and aid stations every 20km, but you are also in Kerry,so there’s no plane, bike transport Read more
When I finished IM Frankfurt in 2017, I just hoped it wouldn’t be my last – I had loved the training and the discipline. I had found my sporting distance – there is no doubt I have a diesel engine. When the talk started with a few of the girls Read more
JUNE 2017 As the final weeks approached I opted for a test and confidence session a ‘Metric IM’ 2.6km swim, 112km Bike and 26km run. This was an opportunity to put all 3 disiplines together, to practice my nutrition and ensure my gear was comfortable to wear for the day. Read more
The Celtman Xtreme Triathlon is an international competition of triathlon that takes place on a slightly greater distance than an Ironman (3.8 km swim in jellyfish infested Atlantic waters of 110C, 202 km hilly bike, 42 km of running up 2 munros ).It is held annually in June in Achnasheen Wester Ross in the foot of the Torridon Hills in Scotland . Ranked in the Read more
After finishing second place at the National Mixed Relay Championships, Limerick Triathlon Club qualified for the European Mixed Relay Champions that were held in Banyoles on Saturday, September 3rd. The original team that raced in Mullingar in July included former National Champion, Aaron O’Brien but as Aaron was unavailable, Ross Read more
About 6 weeks ago I received a message through Facebook from Lynne asking if I was interested in racing in the relay Champs in July. I had sent an email to the club saying I would like a new experience and replied I would be available. After transferring my Ennis Read more
Last September making the decision to learn to swim was not an easy choice for me. I had little or no experience. Now aged 41 and this coupled with having a fear of water made it seem like an enormous ask! However having signed up for lessons with UL Arena Read more