During the summer, some of the team travelled to Spain to train and race. We chose a triathlon in Pont de Suert, hilly, and a lake swim. A first for all of us!
I did a short distance: 950m lake swim 🏊♂️ 60km bike with 1200m elevation and 11% climbs ⛰
10km flat 🏃♂️
Michelle did her first sprint triathlon, in a lake, on hills and not at sea level and she also got PBs on the run!
I really recommend this race. It’s an amazing swim, with an in-water start. It took me a bit to get going but I had also decided to take it easy given the climb ahead and we really didn’t know what to expect. I heard the race director warn us that it was “11% and brutal” so I thought I’d be prudent.
I’ve never seen anything so beautiful on a ride. Gushing clear mountain streams, lush forests and crisp air, for the first loop I wore my l/s cycling jersey and my hands were cold.
The aid station was at the turning point and they had everything you could want. Noted also, that there was no litter on the ride. Athletes did not throw their rubbish on the ground and I only saw one full gel packet on the ground during the whole route 👊 (OTE and Maurten all the way)
I took a podium too which I am really chuffed with. It was a small female playing field on the short course and I’m really proud of all the women who got out there and did this course.
We also got a prize for the only all-female racing team – go ladies!
The run route was amazing, alongside the river with shade, trees, and a bit of it through the village with some very kind people hosing us down and they had also set up a massive garden sprinkler to keep us all refreshed. Those Finisher ISO gels were a treat!
Fantastic organisation, amazing support from all of the residents and Team SBR, and other athletes cheering us on as we passed each other on the bike and run course. I love racing in Spain!!
Rock on the next one!!
We also did a massive mountain bike ride for 65km from Xerta to Horta San Joan – it was boiling hot but we survived and had some wonderful ice lollies on the way. We trained at the beach in L’Ampolla as well, and did a couple of swim/runs too.
All in all, the Baix Ebre provides an excellent training ground for all levels and I will be holding more training camps in 2023 to be combined with races.