My first COVID-safe race
Below, coached athlete Harriet Teare talks to us about her race experiences at the Cotswold 113 event. This was the first significant triathlon to take place in the UK after COVID restrictions were eased. Here is her race report/thoughts the word “weird” is used a lot as it is a change from what we are used to, but at the same time, she did enjoy being back in a somewhat familiar place.
Cotswold 113 in 2019 – social distancing was still a ‘thing’ on the bike!
I had mixed feelings going into the race - not from the risk of exposure perspective. Still, with other parts of the world going back into lockdown it felt like a bit of a frivolous thing to do, and it seemed a bit awkward to go into a community and increase their risk. Having said that I was also keen to support a small business – and it’s a race I have done 3 or 4 times before, always enjoyed and appreciated all the care and thought that Graham and the team put in. Given they were going to all this trouble to put on an event, it felt a bit churlish not to show up. Plus it was Kat’s 40th, and given no support was going be allowed on-site, it was essential to show up for her too.
With all that in mind, preparation for the race was weird, as I don’t think I believed it was going to go ahead. Then there was the threat of a non-wetsuit swim, and then my bike got stuck in the shop, and then Gordon benched me from running, so it felt like even more of a ridiculous thing to be doing. Then I drove over at the crack of dawn and was treated to the most spectacular sunrise in the rear-view mirror. I got off the slip road onto the roundabout that features prominently in the bike course and saw the triangular ‘cycle event’ signs, and then I realised I had a massive grin on my face, and that stayed on for the rest of the day.
The new normal?
In lots of ways, everything felt pretty normal and familiar, normal parking, normal, slightly nervous chatter with other drivers, normal checking with each other how it was all supposed to go – although this time it was about when to wear masks. There was a short queue to get into transition as they took our temperatures. Interestingly, mine came in at 34.5, which shows the thermometer was reading a bit low. I did wonder what their definition of ‘fever’ actually was: on a thermometer under the tongue I’d expect to be 36ish. Then there were acres of space to rack, which was rather good! Normal chat between participants, just all in masks, which was a bit weird, and then we were ushered out of transition.
From Racking to Racing
I was a bit confused when I could magically remove my mask to go from racking to competing so then had to find a bin for it after I’d left transition - another thing to think about, but no big deal. I had purposefully arrived relatively late as I was a late wave, so didn’t manage to catch Kat before she raced, which was weird, and there were quite a few riders who weren’t planning to swim – also a bit strange. Still, as we clambered into our wetsuits and checked over our kit, the usual conversations were going on about how unprepared people felt, how nervous, what’s the swim route etc. so all very familiar and ordinary. Throughout the day, it felt like the team had thought carefully about how to keep us all distanced. The one blind-spot was the bit between transition closing and the swim starting because of the wave approach and then the rolling start in each wave. There was a bit of a queue to the swim start that ran along the portaloos and was hemmed in by the closure of transition. It was challenging to queue and keep distant in this section.
I was queuing for my wave the first swimmer came through, and very sedately walked to his bike and then walked his bike through to the mount line (also weird: just so relaxed and unhurried). There was a poor guy who opted not to swim was seen heading out on this bike only to return a few moments later with a broken chain. I overheard later on that they patched it up and sent him on his way - so again.. very much the usual supportive, friendly feel to it all.
Racing
The swim itself was weird but fabulous! I somehow accidentally managed to position myself at the start of my wave. We were set off ten seconds apart, but six minutes behind the last swimmer of the previous wave, which meant that once I started, I didn’t see a single another person the whole way round. Usually, I rely on the flailing limbs ahead of me to help with sighting, but this time I had nothing and therefore, had to stop a couple of times to figure out where the buoy was against the low sunshine. Somehow without feet to follow, and off the back of about three actual swim sessions, I still managed to shave 30-seconds off my previous swim time. It felt great and so happy to be ‘racing’.
The transition was a very relaxed affair, and it felt appropriate to walk through, giving everyone plenty of room and enjoying the stopped clock which required a mindset shift when you got back on the bike to remember it was a time trial! Because the start order was alphabetical, there was no way of judging who you were passing or being passed by in terms of immediate competition.
The bike itself was the most normal bit of the day - it was a familiar route, there were a handful of supporters strung out along it, it was weird being on my road bike rather than my TT, but that was only indirectly COVID-related. As I knew I wasn’t going to be running, I was trying to hammer it, which was quite a distraction. I appreciated that they had changed the course to avoid the narrowest sections, especially through villages, and it felt like an excellent choice to be trying to reduce our impact on the local area. I didn’t notice the redesigned aid stations, because I tend to try to be self-sufficient on the bike anyway. The lack of drafting was noticeable, and everyone seemed to make an excellent effort to keep their distance. However, I did pass a couple of pairs and wondered if they were ‘households’ given the alphabetical start. Two laps of the course, great support from the volunteers as always, and good encouragement on the dismount line, all felt very familiar, and then I stopped, which was very abnormal, but again, not COVID related! So I can’t comment on the run course, although it looked pretty narrow in places, where they had runners going in both directions. I spent quite a while hanging out on the finish line. I appreciated the effort that the MC and volunteers were doing cheering people in because it was noticeable to have so few supporters around. Athletes were still trying to keep their distance, but the nervous edge from transition had dispelled and with it quite the level of awareness on distance. There were lots of sheepish, apologetic smiles if you did get a bit close, but all very friendly.
A very different finish line in 2019 – now, crowds aren’t invited and you need to move on fairly quickly after the race.
Reflections on the race
I enjoyed racing, and the little flash of normality and I did appreciate the effort the team had gone to put it on, so on the day, I was pleased I had raced. I have found it quite tricky since though. I had the usual post-race fatigue and appreciated a slightly quieter training week, but this week the motivation to get back on it has been noticeably lacking. I’ve been enjoying the swim sessions I’ve done, and have been trying to keep on top of the physio I need to do to be able to run again, but I almost have that end of season ‘I’m done now, I’m over it’ feel - which, given its only august, is very strange. It feels a bit like when you stop at a traffic light and need a bit of a heavy push to get going again. Recently, I’ve been toying with the idea of doing something a bit more off the beaten track with my next race, and less formally organised - I have no enthusiasm for something of IRONMAN scale. Still, I think that the Yukon foot race would be awesome. I’m not sure if that is a reaction to COVID or whether I’m just ready for a new ‘I don’t know if I can finish this’-type challenge. I’m almost a bit disappointed I’ve got so many races already booked in for next season having been rolled from 2020, as I feel like I’m missing out on the opportunity to sit back and think about what I want to do. My current goals are hangovers from previous years. And given 2019 Outlaw full was supposed to scratch the IRONMAN itch, and then didn’t, and then IRONMAN Wisconsin was going to do it this year, and then hasn’t, I feel like this one goal: to go sub-11 at IRONMAN is taking an awfully long time to come around. I’m sure I’ll be excited about it again once I’m running again, but coupled with Paris marathon being re-cancelled, it almost feels like racing, and being reminded of why I love it, has made the not racing even harder.
In conclusion, it was a great event—all credit to the organisers for putting it on for us. They may need to think a bit more about the swim queue. Nevertheless, I honestly didn’t feel ‘at risk’ at any point. Now I want to run a 100km ultra or swim the channel or both! I have the urge to do something that’ll push the limits and shake up my understanding of my boundaries and these sports. So for that, I am genuinely grateful.
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