Bala Grit: Chris Earns a European Championship Place
The lake was made interesting by choppy conditions
Bala is a beautiful long valley in North Wales, with the town of Y Bala at the north end of a long narrow lake. This was the venue for the British Standard AG Championships this year, so I signed up, and drove up there for a Sunday morning race. It's a long way, so I camped close by the previous evening - very peaceful. Both days were warm and sunny, and everything was blindingly green - a welcome change this year!
The organisers and BTF had scheduled multiple events, Sprint, Standard and Legends (70.3ish) distances, preceded by the last round of the elite Super Series as a sprint race. So we got to see the cream of British triathlon elite (apart from Betsy, Tom etc) up close as they were first of the 500+ taking part in the events to start. Awesome to see the speed being generated both in the water and on land.
Then it was our turn. I was in the fourth of five waves, so a had very civilised 11.15 start. However this meant a stiff breeze had started by then, and the first 750m up the lake was made interesting by choppy conditions. Plenty of room was available to adjust your stroke for hitting or missing a wave and coughing up water sucked in at the wrong time. The leg back to town with the waves was much easier. On the way to the bike in T1, my hamstring cramped so I had to hobble the last 50m and fend off BTF officials who asked if I was "all right". Well I wasn't, but thought I'd see what happened on the bike. The course was a flattish out and back along the lake and beyond, again with a bit of a head-on breeze, but sunny and warm. The organisers had closed the road which made for a safe and enjoyable route to ride and negotiate with dodgy hamstrings. This went well and I was able to produce about the power I see normally. So my plan was to ride hard and try to run, but probably have to stop, as the same issue had stopped me running for a month earlier in the year. So back into T2, and while putting on my run shoes I said to the eventual winner of my AG, who was doing the same "...that's the last you'll see of me today...." Onto the run, and into deep negotiation with the left hammy. In practical terms this meant a very different leg action and a pace around 6:30 per km (!) instead of the 4:45 I'd been hoping for. The route was a pleasant and flat 5km out and back with nice views over the lake, and green fields where the few sheep could be seen running away from the lycra clad hordes. Negotiations continued as I shuffled along, and I found I did not have to walk, it just felt like it. It was a pleasant surprise when the 5km turnaround appear, and I could heard back into town. Tempting fate I very slowly and cautiously raised the pace to the heady heights of 5:50 per km, and actually passed one or two people. So I stumbled across the finish in 2:54, happy that I'd shuffled the whole way, after expecting to walk or even fail to finish. Although 4th in my AG, which had not been my aim, I was happy to have qualified for the Europeans next year in Kitzbuhel.
A long way to Bala, but a very well organised and friendly experience for all levels of athletes. They also take surprisingly good photographs, I look much more dynamic then I felt, probably because I was moving so slowly!
CHRIS OWENS
I was happy to have qualified for the Worlds next year in Hamburg.
