Simon:

Sitting at home with time to spare (not usual), last day of the year and too horrible outside to go out and train. I thought that it might be fun to share my season with my extended family ie. Scarab tri.

It has been a strange year in terms of competition for yours truly, a real mixture of highs and lows.

 It began as usual with Harlech, I had a groin injury which I picked up a few weeks earlier playing “meet the road” on my bike, the weather was awful, cold, windy and damp. So obviously Harlech was one of the lows right, no not at all, something about Harlech no matter how bad it gets, always makes you enjoy it, I love it.

Next came Burntwood, sunny, warm, hardly any wind and I hated every minute of it. I honestly can’t think of a single good thing to say. Boring 800m pool swim (please), badly stewarded stop/start bike and running through pedestrians, across main roads and around roundabouts. Sorry maybe it was just me.

Tri Uk in Ellesmere Shropshire came next; I hadn’t done this one before. It was great, well organised, beautiful swim, fast bike and I managed to overtake 6 people on the run (honest), and before you say it, no they weren’t dead, dying, walking, 100 yrs old or on crutches.

Then came the high point of my season; Trentham ½ Ironman. For the first time ever I honestly didn’t know when I started whether or not I was capable of finishing, this was truly uncharted territory. What a great day, an hilarious swim, my best bike of the season (my average speed was higher than any other tri) and my first half marathon. I won’t lie and say that I enjoyed the run but I did finish without walking, dying, throwing up or passing out, not sure about after, that bit is somewhat of a blur. The sense of achievement crossing the line was unparalleled. Great.

Boundary Breeze next, my main memory is of a sense of team. For the first time we had enough members together for us to look like a team, as usual the weather was great and I think everyone enjoyed the day. The less said about my personal performance the better.

Mike has been trying to talk me into doing the relays for three years. I guess I am a bit self reliant and don’t like feeling that I might let others down, so I have always found a reason not to do the relays. I was totally wrong, they are simply the most fun you can have doing triathlon. They are like a really tough brick training session with a lot of laughs thrown in for good measure. No pressure, great venue and just a fun day out.

Finally to Bala, it has taken me up until the last couple of weeks to shake the disappointment of Bala. I was dire, there is no other way of describing it. I don’t really know why; one event to many, end of season fatigue , over expectation, probably a little of everything but definitely my lowest point since I began doing the sport.

Those are my own personal recollections, but the best are those which involve other people.

Alan battling his swim demons and finishing the Boundary Breeze, Jess moving forward and getting prepared for her first tri. Marks face after finishing the “bog snorkelling” swim at Trentham spitting out imaginary debris. Mike waiting for me with a hundred metres to go at Trentham and crossing the line together after 6 hrs. Nick smashing his expectations in his first ½ Ironman. Gwyn repeating the Boundary Breeze after hating the swim the year before and getting a lift from a farmer at Denbigh after getting a puncture. Duncan progressing in his own quiet way and losing his “going downhill fast on a bike” inhibitions. Feeling guilty about encouraging Moshe and Ollie to take on a long Saturday ride which they both clearly didn’t enjoy one little bit. Jane getting much more comfortable riding in traffic on Saturday rides and Jenny moving from her cast iron mountain bike to a more serious racing machine. Finally my mate Ralph, moving rapidly from a breastroking, bike grinding, run hating beginner to a serious frontcrawl swimming, hill climbing, smooth running Triathlete.

I would like to thank everyone for there contributions to the club and to making my season all the more interesting and fulfilling, long may you all continue.

Lets tri and make 2006 even better.

Ian:

Although I have hardly participated in many club events this year, the highlights were

• Boundary breeze, where, to save transition time I forgot the wet suit, then battled with Mike on the bike, and watched everyone suffer on the run. Good to see so many of the club participating.

• Weardale Olympic, (where?? near Durham). This was my first open water swim. My wife commented that we looked like leemings as we complete the swim, the bike was two undulating/ hilly laps round the lake, followed by a reasonable run. Great course, well organised.

• Hellvellyn, due to the terrain it is equivalent to a half iron man. Swim in the most beautiful lake in Cumbria (I can recommend the view from the centre of the lake), followed by a strenuous ride round the valleys and passes of the lakes. I had to walk/ run up Kirkstone pass… I was going faster than those who were cycling! Then the run, hellvellyn summit and back, this was right up my street and I had great satisfaction in finally beating the guy who introduced me to Triathlons

Ralph:

I should start about 18 months ago, when I couldn't swim front crawl, hadn't owned (let alone ridden) a bike for about 20 years and found running "boring"! Not much basis to get into Triathlon...

Three things occurred about the same time: the onset of "mid life crisis" (turned 40 in 2005); getting bored with the same old routines in the gym, and watching some of the Olympic Athens triathlon in September 2004.

As a result, I thought, initially that I'd base some gym routines around elements of the triathlon. Then I got hooked and got the really crazy idea to actually attempt to complete a triathlon!

So I started adult swimming lessons (to learn the crawl); bought a 2nd hand bike off ebay and discovered Scarab Tri Club (you lot!).  

The first few Saturday bike rides were really make or break; I found them so tough, initially, that dreaded them from Wednesday's onwards. However, I was motivated by the knowledge of how good Vikki was (how could I expect to keep up with her), and by Simon's relentless encouragement, enthusiasm and dry humour! I would like to take this opportunity to state to all, in my opinion, Simon is a credit to the club and a great ambassador to the sport. But it wasn't just Simon; I had great help and advice from, among others: Vikki, Ian and John Sanders  

Slowly, and with a lot of help, during the first part of 2005 I turned from a semi-mature "couch potato/slob" to someone who could contemplate entering/completing a race. My swimming also started to come along, although for much of the year, it remained my greatest source of concern and worry (would I be able to manage 400m in a pool; then 800m open water; then (heaven forbid) 1500m open water?).

The training was one thing, but it wasn't an end in itself; ultimately I wanted to enter some competitions, with the intention simply to finish. So I did. Below are some of the thoughts I've had from the events I tried:

Speed Demon Duathlon in March: I couldn't believe the pace of the pack in the first run; still at least I didn't finish last... 

Chirk Sprint Tri in April: first proper tri (albeit sprint) sunny day; great company with Jenny; loved the bike ride and felt fantastic at finishing.

Burntwood in May: another sunny day; enjoyed travelling with Simon and hanging out with Nick; was disappointed with my time, but brummie distances are clearly different from the rest of the UK (i.e. they have stretched tape measures) and their marshals clearly believe that competitors are psychic.         

Trentham in June (sprint NOT the 1/2 ironman): another fantastic day (also my 40th Birthday); I didn't realise that I should have practised bog-snorkelling in advance; I can't say I really enjoy the swim but I enjoyed the humour shared before the race. Also the sight of 200+ triathletes starting an open water swim is a stirring sight.

Boundary Breeze in July: yet another great (sunny) day; I loved the swim; the encouragement and feeling of belonging to "Team Scarab" was immense; Duncan was SO unlucky to be done for drafting (other entrants did far worse but weren't penalised); Alan and Jess entering and finishing their first triathlons were really inspiring.

and finally to Bala in September: my first Olympic distance event; my whole year was focussed upon completing this, yet I felt unprepared when the day arrived; the cold lake water; I nearly gave up 200m into the swim and then felt such relief in finishing the swim; the beauty of the countryside during the bike ride; pacing my way up the "hill" during the first part of the run; the feeling of being completely spent, mixed with the feeling of elation on completing the course and smashing my target time.

Sorry if I have rambled on for too long; this has been a year to remember for me. Not least for finding a new sport, that has become a new way of life, joining a club although small, that is filled with people, who became both friends and competitors, and in self-realisation, in challenging my own limits and perceptions of what is possible. If anyone is reading this who hasn't had a go at a triathlon, or who is afraid to move up a to a greater distance, I urge you to try; push yourself - limitations are only in your mind. You will be amazed at what you can achieve if you do push beyond your perceived limits. I have been.

Finally, happy new year to you all; may 2006 bring you all you desire

Jess:

Well this year I tried particularly hard to force myself out of bed on a Sunday morning and to keep regular attendance at all the training sessions. I then managed to go to the Boundary Breeze, the idea of an open water swim was very daunting and the psychological idea of being in the middle of the lake made me swim extremely slow so I know that is what I need to work on to do Boundary Breeze 2006. The bike was also quite slow and so with the introduction of a slower pace bike ride on a Saturday I am now doing more  cycling.

Hopefully all this extra work will pay off this next triathlon season and I will try to do more than 1 tri.

If anyone else has anything they would like to share with the club about 2005, email me at scarabtri@hotmail.com