I really must Tri ( no pun intended) to do just the one event on a weekend

last weekend was another busy one with the TSE Upminster Youth event on Saturday which doubled as the Eastern Region Championship Race, then the more fun event of the Eastern Region Relays at Gosfield on the Sunday.

                                                                      
On Saturday the serious contenders were myself and my two IRC partners Connor Delaney and Sean Watson and it was certainly close in the swim with just the thickness of a wetsuit between us. With the 3 of us used to doing the major national events that now see us cycle on tarmac the 3 of us found the grass bike course hard going, but after following the slipstream of Connor on the first few laps the announcement of being warned for drafting spurred me on to attack on one of the up slopes and take the race on from the front and get myself a reasonable lead. The decision not to wear cleats on just a 7k ride also helped in ensuring my transitions were quick and this left me with me in a comfortable position on the run to lead Connor and Sean home in 2nd and 3rd to claim the Eastern Region Championship Race title.

Hopefully all 3 of us will have a good summer of training and rest so we can both collectively as the Eastern Region team and individually do well at the IRC in early September.

On to Sunday and the relays as the youngest team in the race we knew that the swim and run would favour us, but could we stay in contention on the bike leg? The fact that the Captains Table team from TSE brought in a ringer to contain our threat showed that although a fun event, there was a serious competitive element to the race as well, and I found that out early on in the swim. After Adam Edwards strong first leg had us in contention at the handover I rankled my fellow TSE teammate from the Captains Table team by diving ahead of him  over his shoulder on entry which saw 10 yards of elbows and legs flying( as an adult he should be ashamed of himself) as we jostled for position, but there was no way I was giving in and my youth won through. Leading us into first place, Jens also had a strong swim leaving us well positioned in first position out of the swim, but then came all the adult males on their expensive machines who somehow find enough time to do some serious training on their bikes and it did not take long before we were pegged back and overtaken by 3 groups who had 3 strong bike legs that pushed us back into 4th and even this position was under threat but some consistent runs from the 3 of us, saw us see of those behind and cut the deficit on 3rd place marginally but in any event 4th out of 90 teams was a good effort in what was an enjoyable event.

Now a little bit of a lull before the London and the Hyde Park Aquathlon

Not for wimps.....

Another busy weekend saw me take in the London Youth Games on Saturday finishing 2nd in the cycling time trial and a quick exit to hit the road for Wales and Porthcawl and the main event of the weekend, the next leg of the British Triathlon Junior and Youth Super Series.

This event doubled up as a selection race for the GB European Youth Relay team, so Juniors and Youth raced together along with a group from the Irish Academy it made for strong competitive race with 70 starters. Also the first time for me swimming competitively in the sea.

I exited the swim safely although in a big group the race to the bike leg was frenetic and with so many athletes jostling for position at the exit from transition the inevitable happened with a couple nasty accidents with a couple of people hospitalised - James Allan, all the best hope your injuries are not that serious and you are back competing shortly - Once the riders settled there were 3 leading groups and I was happy to be in the 3rd especially as there were so many junior competitors some 3 to 4 years older than me left behind me.

Having exited the bike leg safely I got out on to the run and whilst my run still needs some work it is steadily improving. I finished 23rd overall and 6th in my youth section, and taking out the Irish youth member that beat me it means I was 5th from a Super Series perspective which is showing great consistency across the series. Hopefully I can maintain this over the last 2 races this year.

Given the older more physical competitors along with the size of the field this was a demanding race and as I am one the youngest in the field I am pleased with the outcome in what was one of the most enjoyable races of the series thus far.

Finally congratulations to Miles Burton who is the same age as me and finished 2nd overall so gaining a place in the GB European Relay team, another excellent performance from Miles and something for me to aim for.