Brynsiencyn Time Trial a la Marc Jenkins.

The weekly time trials organised by Clwb Rasio Mona are varied and a good test of your time trialling prowess, and as they are the same few over the season, you can see if you are improving.
The Brynsiencyn time trial is an 8 mile out and back course, with a few bumps, but not too many. Your start position depends on what time you arrive , and as I'd made an early start fom my house about 11 miles away, to be in time for the 7pm start, I was number 4. I noticed after I'd paid that my front tyre was flat, but a quick re inflation with a track pump, and all seemed ok!!

The race started at 7, with me going off at 4 minutes past the hour. After the good warm up, my ride, I thought, was really good.

I travelled the 4 miles to the turn around point, and made my way back to the finish. After about 5 miles, I noticed that the front of my bike had dropped slightly, to my amazement, I had a puncture, I should have known earlier really, from the flat tyre at the start. Off I came, and as I had no spare tube nor puncture repair kit, I started to run the rest of the 3 miles. Marc Jenkins came to mind, when in the 2004 Olympics, he carried his bike for 2kMfollowing a collision, and although he didn't get a medal, he still finished, what a hero. After about 1.5 miles, my father arrived in the T5 Transporter, after one of the other triathletes, Arthur Connell had alerted him to my plight.

British Aquathlon Championships, Hyde Park, London.

The 7th race of the Dextro Energy ITU World Championships came to London on the weekend of August 6-7. As part of the weekend, the British Aquathlon Championships were also held.

I travelled to London the day before, the roads were quite quiet, and the journey was uneventful, apart from the sat nav taking us in the wrong direction as we approached the big City.

The big day arrived, and it was an early start, as I wanted to see the womens' elite race, which started at 8.30, and also register for my race and pick up my number and timing chip. The day was sunny, but it was still early as the triathletes walked through transition to the pontoon start. It was a non wetsuit swim, so the girls looked very cold, trying to keep warm, in either sponsored jackets or just towels.
A really good race, which saw Helen Jenkins take the win. Some race photos can be seen on SportpicturesCymru. After the race, it was back to the hotel to have some rest and something to eat. My race started at 6pm, so it was quite a long day.

I made my way back to Hyde Park at about 3.30, this time on the bus, as the taxi was very expensive earlier in the day. As we arrived the age groupers were competing in their race. All kinds of bikes were on show, from bikes with shopping baskets on the front, to some really nice time trial bikes with disk wheels.

I met up with Rich Brady, Welsh Triathlons performance coach before the race, along with other members of the team. Rich strongly suggested that I use a wetsuit for the swim, as this would give me some benefit against the non wetsuit swimmers. By this time it was quite hot, and the water temperature had risen to above 22 degrees, which meant a compulsory non wetsuit swim for all the competitors.

We all lined up on the pontoon, eagerly awaiting the race start.

The hooter went and off we went. I had a good start in the swim, but soon lost the lead pack, as someone pulled me back by my feet. I think I may have kicked him after that, as he soon let go!! I came out of the water, after a 750m swim in 23rd place and in a time of 11:37, before running to transition to put on my Inov 8 233 road shoes. I had a really good transition, completing it in 1:08, 11th fastest, only 3 seconds behind the fastest T1 time.

So, time for the 5k run around the Serpentine, two laps of 2.5kM. I finished the 1st lap in a time of 8:43. I pushed the second and last lap, and came home in a time of 8:03, a huge negative split. I even managed to have a sprint finish with Rory Atkins. My total 5kM run time of 16:50, and a total aquathlon time of 29:34.
Race results can be seen here, with race photos here. A really interesting innovation can be seen here, where some clever software replays your race, taking information from the timing chip.

Dolgellau 5

The annual Dolgellau 5 mile race took place on Saturday. Race started at 1.30pm, so no rush, but starting early enough to have a look at the course, register and warm up. These local races are great as they are a good test but also a good social event as everybody seems to know each other.

As the field congregated at the start line, Tim Davies, 2010 British Fell Running Champion, also lined up. The gun went off, and Tim sped up the first steep hill, using his superior mountain strength to gain a good lead by the time he reached the first mile. By this time I was in 6th position.

I was wearing my Inov 8 Road x 233's for the first time, making the transition from the 255's. The 233's are lighter, and I felt comfortable running in them.

Another steep hill, before the course levelled off and then headed down hill until I reached around 5.5k, and then it levelled off to the finish. By this time, I'd gained one position, and was up to 5th, but with 3 seconds behind the 4th runner. The course then followed the A470, until it turned left following the road into Dolgellau. Turning right, the course went under the main road, before going over the river and joining the cycle path to the finish. By this time, I was up to 4th, with Alex Lanz, the junior runner from Meirionydd Running Club in 3rd.

400m to go, which seemed like a lot longer. There was no time to catch up and get 3rd place, so I settled for 4th, in a time of 29:44. The 233’s coped really well, and I’ll be definitely be using them again.

Race pictures can be seen on SportpicturesCymru.

Llanberis Slateman Triathlon

I was looking forward to competing in Snowdonia Slateman Triathlon for some time. I was supposed to do the British Triathlon Super Series in Strathclyde, a part of the Welsh team, but with three races needed to count, I could afford to do my local triathlon. By local, I mean local, not getting up at 4.30 in the morning and travelling or staying the night before. I had to travel 4 miles to get to the Slateman, so a bit of a lie in for a change.

I actually did the race as part of a team, me swimming, local and one of the best cyclists, Gareth McGuiness on the bike leg, and former Welsh International runner Alun Vaughan on the run. We'd been billed as the dream team prior to the race, and confidence was high.

I registered the day before, and the weather was atrocious. Gale force winds and horizontal rain!! I met Gareth at registration, and talked through our upcoming race. Alun couldnt make it and we'd arranged to meet him early the next day. The buzz, even the day before at registration was good, catching up with friends and fellow triathletes, and helping the organisers set up the trade stands, Revolution Bikes, Zoggs and Surf Lines.

We stayed a bit longer than we'd planned at registration, because of the weather, and it wasn’t getting any better! A quick phone call to my personal taxi, and we had a ride home. The VW T5 arrived, and we quickly put the bikes in the back, and off home we went, dropping Gareth off on the way.

The next day arrived soon enough, and thankfully the rain had stopped. The wind was slightly better, but still very strong. I arrived at race at 8am to meet Gareth, and Alun arrived soon after. We talked about how long our part of the race would take, so the others has a chance to warm up properly and have plenty of time to get back to transition to do the handover. I estimated my swim would take about 10 minutes for the 750m open water swim in Llyn Padarn. The triathlon bike course is part of a local TT race, and Gareth holds the record of 1:15, so in this weather he thought he could do it in about 1:20. Gareth was using his Specialized time trial bike with a disk wheel. As you can imagine this prompted plenty of comments from the other triathletes, as I don’t think I saw anyone else using one. Gareth’s only reply to them was, "Just see who comes back first" This left plenty of time for Alun to do his usual warm up. He thought he'd do the run in about 42 minutes.

Next on the agenda was the safety briefing, deliverd by Tim Lloyd.

So, all too soon, it was time for swim. I knew the lake had been cold for some time, partly due to all the rain we've been having in this part of the world. I wasn't disappointed as I stepped into Llyn Padarn! The Llyn was down to less than 11 degrees!! I had time for a warm up before the start, well that's what it should have been anyway, but the temperature ensured that everyone stayed cold. Nearly time for the off, so I went to the front with the faster swimmers, in order to get clear water and try and get to the front. Treading water for a bit, and then it was time for the countdown, I think they started from 10, and then off we went. The usual mayhem ensued, as everyone vied for position. On reaching the first buoy, I found myself in 4th position, but was then promoted to 3rd as the swimmer in front of me slowed. I soon reached the shore, and was out in a time of 10:09, but the run to transition meant that an official time of 10:46 was posted. The two in front of me were Jonathan Pryke and Hamish Shaw.

A quick handover to Gareth, and off he went running out of transition. It was now time to warm up, as I could hardly speak due to the cold!


By the time Gareth had reached the Victoria Hotel about 250 meters away, he was in the lead. Being first, Gareth had a clear ride up to Pen y Pass, well clear of cyclists at least!! No rain, just strong wind and gusts. The wind was ok up to Capel Curig, when he turned left for Dyffryn Ogwen. This is where the wind was really in your face, and in all other directions as well!! Gareth was used to the weather and the route, so he battled on, with the high peaks of the Glyderau looking down on the lone rider, hurtling down the pass.


Commentary at the field was by the double act of Matt Ward and Stephen Edwards.

After about 65 minutes, it was announced that number 412 was approaching the bends leading into Llanberis, a groan of disbelief spread across the field. How could one man and his machine be back so quickly? 412.....that number rang a bell, it was mine, and the rider was Gareth McGuiness!! As he approached the last 100m into transition, the spectators started to cheer and clap. Gareth dismounted his bike, and pushed his bike to the handover point with Alun Vaughan.

Alun, and ex International Welsh athlete stormed off towards the quarry, with no one else in sight.

Through the Dinorwic Power Station, before running up the endless road that snaked its way to the top of the quarry. A slight rest bite after reaching the top, making his way to bus stop quarry, before dropping down to the forest of Coed Dinorwic and the slippery bits. One more road uphill climb, before dropping down again down the steep road at Fachwen, before re entering the forest. Over the small river and up the last incline. As he reached the top, he could see the crowds in the field below. He then headed towards the quarry hospital, and as he did so, we could see him from the field. Along the road to pass the bottom of Vivien Quarry. Aluns last race of the day was against the steam train, which travels from Llanberis to the quarry museum. As the train hadn’t had to run up the quarry and down through the woods, it was the train that one! A few seconds wait for the train to pass, before heading over the bridge and into the field. As Alun came into the finishing straight, the crowds cheered and clapped, what a great atmosphere. Before Alun reached the tape, he stopped and asked Gareth an myself to join him, and we all went over the finishing line as a team.

An interview followed my Matt Ward, and at last I could relax and enjoy the rest of the day.

The presentations were at 3pm in the community centre, a great ending to a great triathlon. The Slateman was well organised, great saftey cover by Surf Lines in Llyn Padarn, great marshalls and a great crowd.

Looking forwrad already to next year, and also to the Sandman in September....see you there??

Great pictures can be seen at SportpicturesCymru.

Moel y Gest

It was the 5th race of the Tuesday night series, oddly enough, last Tuesday, 10th May at Moel y Gest near Porthmadog. It was only my second race of the series, as they clash with a Tuesday night time trials organised by Clwb Rasio Mona.
70 runners turned up to the race, slightly less than the usual turn out, but with excellent runners none the less.



Race started slightly late, but off we went wearing my Inov 8 X Talons 212's. A good start which saw me up with the leaders, on the flatter stuff, before we started the ascent to the summit of Moel y Gest at 0.8kM. My usual problem re occurred when mountain running, when my lower back started to hurt, but I know that usually happens, so carry on regardless and make the most out of a great run.

A good turn out to watch the end of the race as well. I came in 11th overall, 1st U18 and an Easter egg for my trouble.

Report of the race can be found on the Eryri Harriers website, with race pictures on SportpicturesCymru.

Moel y Gest Fell Race

It was the 5th race of the Tuesday night series, oddly enough, last Tuesday, 10th May at Moel y Gest near Porthmadog. It was only my second race of the series, as they clash with a Tuesday night time trials organised by Clwb Rasio Mona.
70 runners turned up to the race, slightly less than the usual turn out, but with excellent runners none the less.



Race started slightly late, but off we went wearing my Inov 8 X Talons 212's. A good start which saw me up with the leaders, on the flatter stuff, before we started the ascent to the summit of Moel y Gest at 0.8kM. My usual problem re occurred when mountain running, when my lower back started to hurt, but I know that usually happens, so carry on regardless and make the most out of a great run.

A good turn out to watch the end of the race as well. I came in 11th overall, 1st U18 and an Easter egg for my trouble.

Report of the race can be found on the Eryri Harriers website, with race pictures on SportpicturesCymru.

Fron Four Fell race

A new fell race to put in your calendar for next year, the Fron Four, organised by Mike Blake. The race includes the Tuesday night fell races of Moel Tryfan and Mynydd Mawr, with two more checkpoints added, making a total of 13.5kM, and a 828m ascent. The race started from Y Fron, after registering at Ysgol Bron y Foel for a 1pm start.

First off the juniors, who were running about 2kM, with a quick presentation before the senior start. The previous sunny days in North Wales had been really nice, with temperatures in the early 20’s. Today, it was cold, drizzly and the cloud was down to below summit height. Ideal for me, as I prefer the colder weather for running, but a possible nightmare for navigation.


Over 30 lined up for the start, and as the gun went, we all headed off for Moel Tryfan at a height of 427m. A 1.8km run along the quarry roads, before starting the small ascent to the summit saw me in 8th place. As I ran with Paul Jenkinson, we split up after about 3km Paul decided to bare left, as I went right. As I started the uphill climb to Mynydd Mawr, I saw Paul to my left. My route seemed to be slightly quicker, but he passed me anyway on the way to summit! As I reached the summit of Mynydd Mawr, some hardy marshals (Iwan Morton, Dilwyn and Sioned), awaited us, and who directed me to the next checkpoint. A miss calculation on my part saw me going in a slightly in the wrong direction, but only added about 200m to the route. After I reached checkpoint 2, I turned around and headed for Foel Rhydd about 2kM away. From here, it was back to the summit of Mynydd Mawr before the fast ascent down to the finish.

I was 10th on the way down, over a minute behind Martin Cliffe. As I approached the finish, I'd managed to catch Martin, and passed him for 9th position with only meters to go.

Great race, despite the low cloud and low visibility. Some good hospitality at the school later with a panad and biscuits, and an Easter egg for coming home first junior and overall 9th place in a time of 1 hour 23min and 18 seconds.

Report by Eryri Harriers can be found here, with some photos by SportpicturesCymru here, and Peter Douglas here.

Chirk Triathlon

A recent injury to my back and calf forced me not to compete in the Chirk triathlon. I went to have a look though, good day and well organised by the Wrecsam Triathlon Club.

Pictures of the day can be see on SportpicturesCymru.

3rd place Andrew Campbell of Wrecsam Tri

Ribby Hall Triathlon

Another weekend, another triathlon. This time in Ribby Hall, near Blackpool. I travelled up on the Saturday afternoon, after dropping my brother and sister off at Parc Menai. They were going to the Welsh Road Relays at Llandow with Menai Track and Field. The three hours trip to Ribby Hall was uneventful, and I arrived at 4.30 in order to register and recce the run and bike route. Nice route and very flat for a change, should make for some fast racing. We were staying at the Holiday Inn at Burnley, which my father admitted to be a mistake as it was about 40 minutes drive away! Nice Hotel though, and the food was nice, which is always a bonus. 6.30am wake up call in the morning, in order to get up for breakfast, and make the trip to the race in plenty of time for me to set up my transition, warm up, stretch and do some drills. Soon it was time for the briefing and the start of the swim. There were 15 of us down to swim at our allotted time of 10.20, which meant 3 swimmers per lane, but luckily this was staggered, and I went by myself. A good 400m swim saw me out of the pool in an unofficial 4.30. I found myself running out of the pool and along the path to transition with eventual winner Beau Smith. Our transition was also quick and again we found ourselves leaving for the bike leg together. This is where the split was taken at 5:15.

As I entered the road I found to my disbelief that my chain had come off! That was the last I saw of Beau, as I came off my bike and got my chain back on. Eventually I started the bike leg, which was a flat course, with some traffic lights after the first corner. I managed to get through the lights without a problem, with the next possible problem being at the level crossing at 13km.

No problem here either, as the trains were late, so only about 4kM time trial to transition. Feet out of the bike shoes and off the bike, as I came to the dismount line in a time of 30:20. I pushed the bike to transition, and quickly got my Inov 8 F Lite shoes on for the run. The 5kM 2 lap run winded its way along the roads in Ribby Hall. As I turned the corner to the finish line, I came home in a 5kM time of 17:52 and a total time of 53:27.

About an hours wait for the results, before I was confirmed as 1st Junior and 8th overall. Great race, well organised and well worth the trip over the border. Results can be seen here, with some pictures here.

Pwllheli Triathlon

It was the second Pwllheli Triathlon yesterday, and like last year, was held on a glorious sunny but cold day, in the sea side town.

Luckily, I'd remembered to turn the clocks forward the night before for a 6.30 start. The 40 minutes that it took to Pwllheli was a nice change to the hours of driving that I do usually, and I arrived in plenty of time to register, sort out my transition and get warmed up for the event.

As I had the fastest swim time of the day, I wore the coveted No 1, and was first to go in the pool. There are some different rules in this triathlon, where no one is allowed to do tumble turns, and after 4 lengths everyone has to move to the next lane by going under the lane ropes! One of the other problems I saw was the 20 seconds intervals between swimmers. This I felt would allow too many swimmers into the lanes at any one time, bu I was fortunate as I was the first to go, and had more or less clear lanes all the way.

I was wearing my new Wales tri suit, made by Speedo, which has a water repellent material, which allows the suit to quickly dry once out of the pool. This certainly was the case, as when I started the bike leg, the suit was dry.

Another different rule in this triathlon, was no running in transition, and as I had a long way to go to my bike, I was forced to power walk all the way, which I'm sure looked hilarious to the onlookers!

No drafting in this race, so it was a 20k time trial from the leisure centre at Pwllheli, to Y Ffor, Chwilog and back to the leisure centre. I was using my new Kuota K Factor triathlon bike supplied by Revolution Bikes, it was only my second outing on it, the first being only last week. A flat start to the bike leg, before a 31/4 km, 80m climb to Bryn y Neuadd Hospital. It was then through the first village of Y Ffor, with a sharp right hand turn along another 1.5km climb to Chwilog.

After 16km, I was caught up by two others, but got stuck in, and didn't let them have too much of a lead. By the time I reached transition, I was only a few seconds behind the first two riders. Bike racked, helmet off and shoes on. They say that transition is the fourth discipline, and although I was in after the first two, I was out before them, and by the first corner on the run route I has a lead of about 20 seconds.

A 5k technical run followed, as I had to follow the pavements along the sea front, which snaked it's way around parked cars and through sand that had been deposited by the strong winds that come off Cardigan Bay. From here, and into Pwllheli and around the marina before turning back to the finish. Not only did I get he fastest 5k run time of the day of 20:33, but also got the fastest swim time of the day, 4:48. Together with my bike time of 37:54, gave me a total time of 1:03:15. This gave me 1st junior and 3rd overall in the race.

A great triathlon, great racing, really friendly atmosphere, good company and food at the Pwllheli Rugby Club made the trip to Pwllheli worthwhile.

Some pictures can be seen on SportpicturesCymru, with results soon, to be seen here.

Kuota K Factor

I received my new bike last week, courtesy of Gareth and Matt of Revolution Bikes in Bangor. Over the past two years, their support has been invaluable, allowing me trouble free cycling, both for training, riding in the local time trials and competing at triathlon.

The new bike is a triathlon specific time trial bike, which I used for the first time on Sunday with fellow triathlete Arthur Connell. I took my new Kuota K Factor to recce the route of the Pwllheli Triathlon, and also have a go at the 5kM run course, along the sea front in the town.

The bike felt comfortable and really fast. Hopefully, this will translate to faster cycling times in my triathlons during the year..watch this space!

I also tried my new Inov 8 road x 255 whilst trying out the run course at Pwllheli. The new shoes were an instant hit, being very comfortable and light, a great road shoe which I might even try in my next triathlon.

Moel Wnion Race

It was my first fell race of the season on Saturday, at Moel Wnion.
The 4.5m (7.2km)1800ft (549m) climb started at Abergwyngregyn, with a steep ascent to the summit of Moel Wnion. Runners from the friendly Hunters Bogg Trotters came down all the way from Scotland, together with runners from Ambleside and Mercia and the local clubs meant that the field was quite strong.

I warmed up on the roads with my new Inov 8 Road X 255's, which, as soon as put them on my feet felt extremely comfortable. More from me on the new road shoe, as soon as I get a proper chance to use them.

I was competing in the same race as the senior runners, but in the U18 category. I was about 6th at the top of the first climb
but lost places on the way to the summit. The X Talons 212's coped well, with plenty of grip, which gave me the confidence to run hard on the way down,

I passed 13 runners, to come home in a time of 45:28, coming home in 1st junior and 19th overall position.
Good day’s running with a welcome panad and something to eat at Yr Hen Felin, Abergwyngregyn.

More pictures can be seen here, courtesey of Pete Mac and on Al Tye's Fell Running Pictures website. Race results can be found here.

South West Duathlon Championships.

I travelled down from Atlantic College to Castle Combe Race Circuit on the Sunday morning following the Welsh Triathlon camp to compete in the South West Duathlon Championships, courtesey of DB Max. I arrived at about 11.30, following a long trip in the mini bus, with my fellow team mates.

My race was due to start at 2pm, which included a mixed race of youth and junior, both male and female. The race included a 2 mile run, followed by a 10 mile draft legal bike race, ending in a 1 mile run. A mass start saw 33 athletes compete for honours. The 1st 2 mile run of 11:07, saw me coming into transition in 11th place.

All the transitions were quite similar for the faster athletes, with mine taking 44 seconds to get out of my running shoes and onto my bike.

I started the bike ride, and soon caught up a few more riders. The draft legal race meant that we could hopefully work together in order to make up some time on the other cyclists. However, as only two of us knew how to draft properly, this couldn't be done, and I lost some more time to the leaders. After 10 miles, which took me 26:22, it was time to enter transition again for T2. I was out in 42.7 seconds, and I was off for the mile run.

Just a mile to go, and hopefully time to catch up some athletes on the run. With 6th fastest run of the day inm y Inov 8 F Lite 230's, I came home in 8th place, 9th overall.

A great day of racing at the circuit. The only disadvantage was the 5½ hour trip home!

Some pictures of the race can be seen on the SportpicturesCymru website.

Cerist Tri Earlybird Winter Aquathlon Series Race 2 - Owain Llŷr James

Second day of racing with a 5am wake up call, in order to start for Machynlleth, and the second in a series of three races in the Cerist Triathlon Winter Aquathlon series. 1½ hours later I arrived at Machynlleth. Only 35 people made the trip, less than the 1st race, perhaps the longer swim and 10kM run kept people away?


The organisers at the Cerist Triathlon Club are all very friendly, and both the aquathlons and triathlons are well organised.

All too soon it was time for my 600m swim in the Bro Dyfi Leisure centre 20m pool. The fastest time of the day saw me exiting the pool in about 7 min 30sec, and a relitavelly poor transition saw starting the 10kM run after 8 min 7 seconds. After a flat, 2Km start, the course soon turned hilly with steep road climbs. After about 5k, I Started to get blisters on my arches, as I wasn’t wearing any socks following my swim. These were getting more and more painful, but if I wanted to win, I needed to run through the pain to the finish. The hills eased off after about 6.5k, before I returned to the road and along to the finish. The official 10k was actually about 10.2kM, and I finished with cramp in my stomach in 40 minutes 2 seconds, giving me a total race time of 48:09.


My feet were bleeding after the race, testimony to the hard and hilly run. It was a great race, which saw me take my second win of the series, putting me in 1st overall position. One race to go, which I’m not sure that I’m doing yet, as there’s a clash with the local Pwllheli triathlon. I’ll keep you posted.

Results from TRI247.com can be seen here.

Cerist Aquathlon Series Race 1 - Owain Llŷr James

I missed the North Wales Cross Country League at Lilleshall in order to take part in the 1st of the Cerist aquathlon races. A 6am start in the fog, gave way to slightly better, but much colder weather further south in Machynlleth. Fifty athletes braved the chilly conditions to swim 400m, followed by a 5kM run.
I had a good swim, which saw me getting the fastest swim time of the day in 4:48. My 5kM run took me 16:29, with a 1 minute transition time to be added, giving me 2nd fastest run time of the day. With an overall time of 22:17, I won the junior category, but also was 1st overall!

Pictures can be seen at http://www.sportpicturescymru.co.uk/

Twin Piers 10K

It was the Pier to Pier race yesterday, which is an annual 10kM race between the piers of Llandudno and Colwyn Bay.


273 runners braved the downpour and gale force winds to run along the cost between the two seaside towns. The race started at 1pm, with the usual frantic start, before everyone got into their stride.
After 37 minutes of running I came home in 10th place. Quite pleased really, as weather hadn’t helped fast running.

I was wearing my new F Lite 230, which I found very comfortable and light. Ideal for road racing.
Results can be found here, and pictures from SportpicturesCymru.