SwimRun Holy Island 2021

Race Report – September 2021

Anglesey is an island just off the mainland North West coast of Wales easily accessible by car over a short toll free bridge. It’s beautiful, rugged coastline, full of little coves and sandy beaches lends itself perfectly to be the home of an annual swim run event called “Love SwimRun Holy Island”.

You can enter the event as an individual or a team of two. We entered as a team, choosing the longer of the two distances on offer. The full distance route begins at Southstack Lighthouse and you basically run and swim your way all the way down the coast to Rhoscolyn. It involves seven runs and six swims, with the longest run just under 6k and the longest swim around 800m, you cover a total of 23k. This distance is very achievable for a first timer and challenging enough for those experienced to push themselves to race for a decent time. The shorter distance has less swims and run transitions but joins a similar route to the full distance just starting a bit further down the coast and cutting a bit off the end while still allowing all the competitors to finish at the same end point. It is a great format, and it works having the two distances running together.

While Adrian had completed SwimRun events before I hadn’t, but I really fancied having a go and so we signed up without giving it too much thought. I suppose as a team we are not well matched as Adrian runs considerably faster than me and swims a bit quicker. However, I knew I could keep up in the swim and Adrian was happy to run at my pace and just enjoy taking part.

We originally signed up for the 2020 event but then covid hit which meant a delay for us to 2021. Covid restrictions also meant our regular swim training went out of the window too and it was only really a few months before the event that we started swimming again in our local Lake to get some sort of swim fitness back. We are really luck to live so close to a lake that offers swimming and one that has a natural run route around, this is perfect for practicing swim run transitions and testing out our swimrun wetsuit.

On the morning of the event parked up and ready to go!

In terms of specific kit we purchased for this event, we bought a swim run shortie wetsuit but made do with old trainers, which we just about got away with on the day. The trainers were okay for running in but a little slippery as the grip on the tread was fairly gone, however, swim run shoes are a bit expensive and we did not feel the need to make the investment. The swim run specific Zone 3 wetsuit was a good purchase (we bought the entry level ones and got them on sale for a good price), although we did cut the legs up a bit as we both felt our knees being covered was restrictive to run in and after we cut them up they were great. We also bought a couple of soft bottles which are easy to stash in our wetsuits and fill up on route and a whistle, which is a mandatory kit requirement.

The LoveSwimRun event organisers are big on being environmentally friendly which we loved. This means you take your own cup or soft bottle with you as no single use cups are available at feed stations and you have to make sure your kit is spotlessly clean before you take part (shoes need to be scrubbed and wetsuits rinsed) this helps to protect the natural environment and lessens the overall impact of the event. Kudos to the event organisers for this important attention to detail.

Group shot at the start of the race!

As we were entered as a team the rules state you must stay within 100 metres of each other on land and 10 meters or so of each other in the sea. Lots of competitors tether together to help with this rule and we thought we would practice swimming with a tether however, after a few attempts which saw us get horribly tangled up in it (and I almost drowned Adrian) we abandoned the idea. We also decided not to bother with hand paddles or swim buoys as it just felt too much of a faff for us to carry them and we did not regret any of these decisions on the day.

On the morning of the race, we parked up near the Village Hall in Rhoscolyn which is both the finish for the event and Race HQ. All competitors are transported up to the start line by coach, this was no mean feat for the drivers as those tight country lanes were difficult enough to drive a car up but for us competitors it was good to sit back, relax and actually a nice, chilled way to get to the start the event.

We got off the coach just before the Lighthouse and walked a few meters up the hill to the start line. It was breezy but sunny and the weather forecast was looking okay too, everyone seemed to be in good spirits and smiling. There were lots of people competing as a team and plenty first timers too. There was a group photo, a final race brief and we were off.

The race starts with a steep, fast downhill followed by a lovely open coastal 5k trail run to the first swim entry point.

Steep downhill from the start, lovely view of the route ahead we are about to swim and run around

I was feeling a bit warm in my wetsuit (I had put a tri suit underneath which in hindsight might have been a bit too much clothing) and glad to get into the first swim. Before the event began I had been nervous about the first two swims as they go out around a headland point and then back in. I am a confident swimmer, but the open sea is something that I am always cautious of however, I need not have been worried as the sea state was calm and the swims are short relative to what we are used to doing. Adrian was leading and I was on his heels (literally touching his trainers!). We had agreed I would swim on his right since he only breathes out of his right side and it meant he could easily keep an eye on me. We swam really well together and seemed to power round that first swim getting to the beach with no issues. Our plan was to keep going as soon as we hit the shore, get running quick and not hang around to avoid getting cold. It worked well, we found our run legs quickly and were off.

Exiting from a swim

The next swim had a bit of a clamber down a steep cliff edge before entering a cove but lots of Marshals were on hand to help. There was a photographer at the water’s edge here, and we stopped for a quick pose before setting off again.

Posing for pictures!

I was really enjoying the swim now. Adrian was doing a great job of sighting and I was keeping up well. We hit the next beach much sooner than I expected and again straight out and off and running again.

The next few swims were across bays with a few rocky entry points all helpfully marked out by marshals. We found we were getting into our groove well and really enjoying the swims and transitions.

Me belly flopping into the swim and Adrian patiently waiting for me to get in!

The coastal landscape does take your breath away and the running sections are definitely made easier by the beauty of the surroundings. I started to lead some of the swims with Adrian leading the run. There was one final longish run before the last swim and at that point I did think to myself I am feeling a bit tired now, so we both sucked down a gel to give us a wee bit of caffeinated energy before the last push home.

The sun had been shining for most of the race and doing a good job of keeping us warm, although by the last swim it was noticeably clouding over, and I could see Adrian was getting a bit cold. Once out of the last swim our final run took us away from the coast back inland, skirting around a forest through a farm finishing with a short downhill road run back to the Village hall. We pushed on as best we could with the run to the end, I was working hard to keep up with Adrian who was like a puppy on a leash trying to get away and over the finish line.

A very, warm welcome awaited us, with plenty of drinks and food on hand to help us all get some much-needed calories back in quickly. By 2pm most of the competitors were finished and the award ceremony commenced. We enjoyed sitting in the sun clapping the podium winners. There were some lovely raffle prizes for everyone on offer too.

During the event, we overtook quite a few people in the swims and the runs, which we always find quite motivating and even although we had absolutely zero expectations about our placing for the event, we were pleasantly surprised to finish 5th in the mixed team category.

Overall, I would highly recommend this race. It is a small, friendly, well organised, with good pre-race briefings, very well marshalled and we found plenty of cheers from the locals along the route on the day too. Importantly we felt very safe in the swims, there were plenty safety boats and people on paddleboards looking out for you.

I have already mentioned the environmental aspect of this race and that was seen right through to the lovely wooden finisher medals we all received. I think we may return to do this one again.

Linda x

All pictures of the race were supplied free courtesy of the event organisers.

Race Report: Redbull Timelaps 2021

Goodwood Motor Circuit 30th October – 31st October

Team Zoot Ohana!

Redbull Timelaps is an annual 25 hour endurance cycling event taking place at various indoor and outdoor venues across the UK. Due to covid restrictions, the ‘in real life’ event at Goodwood Motor Circuit was a much smaller affair than usual but nevertheless still enough cyclists to make it competitive and an exciting atmosphere.

Ahead of the event, Redbull’s team did a great job communicating with us all, supplying nutrition and training plans and most importantly ensuring we all understood the rules of the event. The main rule is only one rider from each team on track at one time and there could be no overlaps, so you had to have your rider stop their Strava tracking before the next rider started or it would be discounted. Simples!

I booked a mixed team relay at the circuit, thinking it would be an ideal opportunity to get some of the UK based Team Zooters together. That and having previously taken part in a Cyclothon at Brands Hatch remembered how much I enjoyed riding on a smooth motor circuit so it instantly appealed. I quickly had volunteers for a team pulled together and while there were others interested the event got sold out super-fast which meant sadly, we could only enter one team.

Since we have done a few endurance events before, Adrian and I did not do anything particularly specific to train, although we did add some longer turbo sessions into our weekly training schedule.

A couple of weeks before the event unfortunately, Antonio one of the original team had to bow out due to injury which opened the door for Greg to step in and we were back up to our team of four. But then in a cruel twist of fate, just days before we were due to start, our other female team member Becky injured herself far too badly to take part. However, the ohana that is Team Zoot Europe came to the rescue and as soon as I put a call out on our team’s facebook page for a volunteer we had an eager taker – hurrah for Katie!

The final full team pictured below (L-R) me, Katie, Greg and Adrian

Tactically, our plan was simple. Just to ride as many laps as we could for an hour and then rotate. This meant we had six shifts each except for one rider who would do seven. We also had the famous power hour at 02:00, where all laps ridden counted double - this hour coincides with the official end of BST and the clocks go back in the UK.

Greg was our starting rider, followed by Katie, me and then Adrian.

Weather forecast for the event looked a bit grim, but then again it is the end of October and it is the UK so none of us really expected it to be that nice, but then again none of us really anticipated it getting as bad as it did.

So anyway… we started the day in full sunshine. Event kicked off at 13:00 and Greg blasted out the first hour, followed by Katie, me and then Adrian. Goodwood circuit is 2.3 miles a lap. It is sheltered in some places and exposed in others, it’s very flat with a couple of rises and a chicane to keep you on your toes. The surface is smooth as can be which is a dream to ride on.

By the time the second rotation started for Greg around 17:00 the rain was starting to fall, and the wind was picking up, with the forecast showing there was considerably more on the way. Team spirits were high, probably due to the amount of sugar we had all eaten, but mostly we were all happy to be racing at an actual event! Everyone was pushing out the watts, getting the laps in and happily totting up the miles.

Before the event began, I wondered how I would while away the three hours in between my lap rotations. Well, that was easy. By the time you get off the bike, shower, change and eat something that is easily the first hour gone; add to this a bit of social media faffing, picture taking, chatting to everyone in earshot that is the second one; taking a nap and prepping to get back on and you quickly realise three hours off the bike goes way faster than the one when you are on it!

Riding in the dark on the track is a weird, but kind of cool experience. The track itself is in total darkness except the track corners are lit up. There was some music blasting from the marshals at various points around the track and Redbull had a massive, illuminated, inflatable arch over the lap marker with searchlights that you could see from the far side of the track.

Hanging onto a group of cyclists or better still inserting yourself in the fast pelaton (fyi that did not happen for me, there were some seriously, fast cyclists at this event) helps avoid your hour on the track becoming a lonely affair. I played a game of "can I catch the red back light of the cyclist in front of me" which had its appeal until at one point the light I was following was the motorbike safety marshal and that was just never going to happen!

Anyway, as the night went on so did the rain and the wind was certainly noticeably keeping us on our toes. Picking up to 50kph there were a few gusts and hairy ‘hanging on’ moments, even the inflatable Red Bull Arch collapsed and was taken down eventually due to the strength of the wind.

Around 05:00 it felt like it might be just teetering on the edge of safety as the rain absolutely battered us and the wind blew even harder. But we all kept going out regardless, coming in absolutely soaked, getting dry kit on and then going out to repeat it all again. The harder the weather came in, the more everyone just gritted their teeth, laughed a little hysterically and kept smiling so that tells you a story.

As daylight broke the weather did not really lighten off and while the sun came out for our final laps, the wind decided to play with us right up to the finish.

Overall we were really strong and consistent as a team throughout the event, but I can’t write this report without mentioning a few team rider highlights: Katie - an absolute legend on a bike, pushing crazy, ridiculous watts and putting in a truly savage 90 minute shift when the weather was at its worst, even coming in to the pit quickly and going back out to do an extra lap, while she waited for the next rider to get ready; Greg – who got on the bike like some crazed puppy let loose and belted out the power hour; Adrian - for turning up on his 25 year old Lightspeed road bike which he has not ridden in six years, and rather impressively, if not almost somewhat literally, managing to ride the backside off it. And me - well apart from forgetting to start my watch for one of my turns, I am chuffed with my performance too.

In total our combined cycling effort for the 25 hours came in at a massive 472.65 miles and in doing so we earned second place in the overall mixed team outdoor event and first place at the track. Not bad at all for a bunch of triathletes, who are generally more comfortable sitting on our time trial bikes than the road ones.

Kudos to everyone who took part, but particularly to the Redbull event team and all the marshals for creating such a well organised event, generally looking after us, supplying endless cups of teas, coffees, biscuits, cans of red bull (obvs), hot showers, clean toilets and general love and support.

Thanks for the memories!

Lx

Ironman Zurich

My first long distance race back in 2017 is one I like to reflect on as this event really set in me the belief that really anyone can do this with the right mindset and training. Reading this race report back now almost four years later it is interesting to see just how far I have come.

Zurich was a great race location and one I hoped to return to but they have moved the Switzerland event to Thun, which looks equally good so maybe I will do that one.. one day! Linda x

Enjoy my report. Be warned, it is a long one!

I woke up on the morning of the race surprisingly calm. I had managed to get a good night sleep and although it was 3.15am, I ate my breakfast of porridge, a banana and drunk a strong coffee. Before long it was time to get the minibus from the hotel to the race start. The mood on the bus was quiet and while I was still feeling a bit nervous, I could feel I was at that point where I just really wanted to get on with it. Arriving at the race village it was a hive of activity, people running around with bicycle pumps, and generally getting organised. I had a good look over my bike, put on my water bottles, nutrition, squeezed my tyres and then decided to just leave it alone. To be honest I had no idea what everyone else was doing tweaking this and that and I could think of nothing else I needed to do. I walked over to the changing tents and got into my wetsuit. I then slowly walked towards the start line with Adrian who was also taking part. Unlike me he appeared really calm and just kept whispering in my ear to check I was okay and keep me calm and focused. We took advantage of getting in for a quick warm up swim, it felt good to get in and move my arms. The water felt lovely and I could feel myself starting to get excited. The announcement finally came for athletes to go to their swim start pens. Adrian gave me a hug and we set off for our pens. I could feel myself welling up a bit as we parted company but I had no tears as after months of training I was determined to get on the start line, with a smile and to enjoy the swim and hopefully the whole race.

The swim was a rolling start which means they let eight people enter the water every 5 secs, this also means you should get in with clear water ahead of you to start with. I had seeded myself in the middle of the 80-90 min box which was actually quite empty, it seemed most people were seeding themselves up the front, which was fine by me. I spoke to other athletes around me, everyone smiling, nervously and encouraging each other. It was a really good experience. We gradually inched forward until there just one or two rows to go. I got my googles in position, and I looked forward to spot the first buoy. The beeps counted down 5, 4, 3, 2,1 and I was off. The first part of the swim was as good as the organisers promised, clear water to get going in, however by the time I got to the first turn it was absolutely crazy. I was in a sea of bodies and arms flying everywhere. I had to do a bit of swimming around people and there was a lot of jostling but I was not at all bothered by it, I was actually enjoying the swim. I found it hard at times to sight the buoys particularly as the sun came up but I just kept following the feet in front of me. In the end, I must have seeded myself for the swim about right as I found I mostly had space to swim and although I did occasionally get clunked on the head by others passing it was really nothing to worry about and also I ended up swimming past a few people too. The water was warm about 21 degrees and beautifully clean. Not as clear as the practice swim I had two days before but only because there were another 1700 people swimming and churning the water up around me. Lake Zurich is marvellous not a bit of weed in sight, it is absolutely huge. It was pancake flat at the start and just getting a little choppy on the far side of the swim. I have to admit it did feel like I was swimming for ages before the final turning buoy appeared and we were swimming back towards shore. As I exited the water, I felt a sense of relief that part was over and also surprisingly fresh. The two guys either side of me said “great job” which was really nice. The crowds were fantastic too, cow bells ringing and loads of clapping, it was brilliant. I had no idea what my swim time was at that point as I had decided to leave my garmin on my bike in case I got it knocked off, so I was so pleased later when I heard I had done 1.21 for the swim as that was bang on my target.

Day before the race, all racked and ready to go

I managed a quick transition and was off on the bike lap before I knew it. The first lap was beautiful and the scenery breath-taking all the way round. Initially you ride along the side of the lake and I remember just feeling so excited that I had completed the swim and was on my way that I did a massive "whoop" out loud to myself a few times, which sounds crazy but I just couldn’t help it I was so enjoying the moment. After about 25k you start to reach the climbing on the route. The bike course is about 1400m elevation overall, a mixture of flat and rolling hills which take you through lots of little villages where the support was great, more ringing of cow bells, people hosing you down with water and cheering ‘Superb’ and “Hupp Hupp Hupp” it was an atmosphere like no other I have experienced. The ride has three noticeable climbs but nothing I was worried about. The main climb is known as The Beast mainly because it is long, it twists and turns and you think you have reached the top and then realise there is another summit ahead. But on the first lap I was passing people, thinking this is nothing at all to worry about at all but in doing so I was accidentally pushing harder than I should have been to reach the top, however at that stage I was not thinking about it, just enjoying the ride. I was focusing on religiously keeping drinking and taking on little bits of food all the way round as I knew from experience I did not want to face the dreaded bonk on the bike. I noticed lots of riders passing me on the long downhill from The Beast, which was a bit demoralising but I am simply not yet confident enough to stay down on my aerobars at high speed however, I was enjoying the views and a bit of leg rest. As we dropped back down into Zurich the streets were lined with supporters and I headed towards the final climb of the lap called Heartbreak Hill. This hill has got to the be the highlight of my race. It’s short and sharp and the final part of it is lined with supporters. You get a sense of how the pro cyclists must feel in the Tour de France as the crowds are standing all over the road cheering and then part as you cycle through them. I could hear the announcer mention my name and number over the tannoy and saying “she is even smiling” I can’t describe how fantastic I felt. I shot down the other side and before I knew it had completed the first lap and was onto lap 2. I remember thinking I was bang on track for a sub 7 hour bike time as I had done lap one in 3hours 20 mins but I am afraid lap 2 got a bit harder and a lot hotter. There is a lot of flat on the first part of the course and while that is good I think my temptation to push too hard got the better of me and as soon as I came off the flat to the climb I started to feel fatigued, as well as hot as hell. The sweat started to pour out my helmet, and honestly even when I have cycled in the heat in Lanzarote that has never happened to me before. I had to make a stop to put on extra sun cream and I kept drinking as much as I could but when I reached the "Beast" for a second time I knew I must have pushed too hard for my ability on lap one as second time up I was absolutely crawling. The aid station at the top was a godsend. I stopped for a hose down and spoke to one of the water guys who offered to put some salt in my water. Although I lost time by stopping I felt so much better when I set off to finish the lap. As I got back into Zurich I could see lots of people on the run and actually spotted Adrian running – I cheered at him and we waved. (He said later he was really worried how I was feeling as I was much further back on the bike than I had planned but as I was smiling he figured I was okay) Heartbreak hill second time round was less exciting but still good support. Anyway, by the time I got off the bike I had done my 112 miles in 7.24 and while I am disappointed with that time, on the day I was so chuffed to be off the bike with just the run to go I was ecstatic!

My lovely Cervelo P2

Longer transition from bike to run as I faffed about trying to find the flipping exit (race brain doh!) As I started the run, I tried to work out what my finish time might be. I was hoping I had swam in 1.30 and so figured I was probably somewhere between 9 and 9.5 hours into the race. You have 16 hours to finish Zurich so I knew I had plenty time to get my run in and hoped I could finish inside my personal target of 14 hours. Given my track record of running 10k off long bikes I thought a 5 hour marathon would be about right. The first 10k took me about 1 hour 10 which is not great, but equally not bad as I was getting my legs back and I did run all the way round that first lap. The heat however, was something else, at that point I think it was over 30 degrees which, for a Scottish lassie who likes to run in drizzle, was a bit of nightmare. Thankfully, I had a cap on which I filled with ice at each station, there were wet sponges as well and they worked really well at keeping me cool. They offered to hose us down too but in hindsight my feet got a bit soggy so it was not the best plan. At the start of second lap it was getting very tough for me. I ran with another guy for a bit who was doing a run 4 mins walk 1 min strategy and that helped me get some food in and compose myself and half way round that second lap I started to just run continuously again. Each water station was about 2k apart and they had all the food, gels and drink you needed. On most of my laps I walked through each station and then ran on again. By the third lap I was feeling good again, and had taken on so many gels I was buzzing and my feet just kept going and going, I did not feel any aches or pains in my knees which I had a few issues with in training. So I was happy, importantly I felt really positive and telling myself to keep going. One of the best tips I had from Adrian in training was to consciously breath in and out of my mouth and get a rhythm going that you can pace to, and it worked a treat for me on race day. Again I could not believe the crowd support on the run it was something else. Adrian and I passed each other on the second lap of my run and he stopped to kiss me which drew a huge cheer from the crowd! By the time I got my last band on and the knowledge I only had 10k to run I was in my zone and on a mission. I loved that last lap, I thanked all the volunteers who had been amazing and when I got to the last 6k point the volunteer, who had seen me three times previously cheered at the crowd it was my last lap and they all did a huge Mexican wave for me, it was so cool, I will never forget it. Running down the finish line was brilliant, the cheerleaders and supporters all going mental and then the words "You are an Ironman" being roared at you as you cross the line. An absolutely brilliant feeling like no other. When I turned around and saw the clock said Linda Todd 14.14.52 I remember feeling pretty pleased with myself. Adrian, who had finished more than two hours before me, was there waiting for me in the athletes garden with a non -alcoholic beer in hand and equally ecstatic as me that I had finished in good time and one piece!

Overall, Ironman Zurich was the best race experience of my life. Will I do another one? Absolutely. Will I train harder? You bet I will. Can you do one? With the right support, focus and determination I will say yes, anything is possible!

Lx