The Apollo Triathlon took place on Sunday 1st April at South Hunsley, East Yorkshire.
The race consists of a 400m swim in the South Hunsley pool, followed by a loop around the undulating and scenic bike course. There are one or two climbs along the route and some sweeping, long descents through rural East Yorkshire, if you have the time to look around you’ll get witness some fantastic views of the Humber Estuary before dropping back in to South Hunsley Sports. The run couldn’t be faster with a flat and fast two lap course which brings you to an often noisy and very well supported finish line.
Report by Christian Brown
A much anticipated date with for the start of the new season, nobody wanted to be the April fool for todays first Triathlon of the season.
It was big Steve Beevers first ever event and with some fantastic winter season training under his belt he was looking to open his account and not disapoint, we had to keep his nerves under control and hope for a good supply of loo roll once we got to the leisure centre, he’d borrowed Binchy’s race belt, so there was plenty of banter about what was expected of him now.
The swim got off to a good start but you could see the nerves kicking in after a couple of lengths, he did a good job not to drown himself and finish the swim intact, after leaping from the pool his transition was completed without hitch and he felt much more comfortable on the bike, finally the racer inside him came to the fore as he competed with faster cyclists picking a few off as he went, a respectable 52 minutes over the hilly course was a good first effort and with a good final transition his run was dispatched in 24 minutes total time 1hr 33minutes.
At the finish line you could see that he had been bitten by the triathlon bug judging by the huge smile on his face roll, bring on Grantham Triathlon.
Andrew Read was looking to improve on last years events, so with some impressive winter training behind him his usual cockney banter gave way to a strange silence and determined look (unless it was constipation).
His swim time was much improved, shaving off a couple of minutes making those nights debriefing in the Yarborough Hunt worthwhile.
This is where the story becomes unclear much like an alien conspiracy, an hour into his ride he was nowhere to be seen only to turn up clad in rubber (well spare innertube) telling stories of how a nice lady had stopped to offer him assistance with his flat tyre which unfortunately brought his race to an end but im sure we haven’t heard the last of him.
I’ve also been training hard over the winter to up my game since Brigg Sprint Triathlon last September, and was determined to make the club proud, my swim was completed in 8.30, a good improvement over last years 9.50 and then onto the bike which was completed in 47 minutes and no dramas, my run seemed to take forever as the course was slightly different to last year with a uphill climb thrown in on the 2 lap course which was completed in 25 minutes making a total of 1hr 22minutes.
It was a shame Sallie couldnt be with us due to her bout of man flu, as we men know only too well its not easy to shake off, but with the support of the other club members cheering us on, the day was a great sucess and we cant wait for the next one.
Well done to newcomer Oliver Saxon who battled with the tough bike course to finish his first triathlon in 1:31:36. Find more details on Olivers race at his blogspot “http://oliversaxon1.wordpress.com/”
Report from Andrew Lawson
Whilst not doing anything to worry the proper triatheletes, I was pleased to knock 3 minutes off my swim time compared with my last attempt at the Brigg Sprint tri. (Unfortunately the actual time of 13’43” was less impressive. The Lincsquad coached sessions and a couple of swimming sessions per week over the winter have definitely helped, but there’s still a lot of scope for improvement).
I was a bit more in my comfort zone on the bike, getting past quite a few other riders, not being passed by anyone else & completing the “undulating” course in 45’43”. The run was mildly disappointing at 22’50”, 55 seconds longer than at Brigg. Feet numb from the cold probably didn’t help & I’ve done very little running over the winter due to foot problems.
My total time was 1 hour 24 minutes, 39 seconds. I’m hoping that, when the full results are out, with some careful number-crunching, I can find something with which to give this a positive spin!
Other members of Lincsquad also taking part were Ric Longcake & Steve Ornsby, with Sam Barker taking part in the junior aquathon.
Full results to follow when released.