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I decided to enter this quadrathlon - Run, Bike, Kayak and Run in winter as a different sort of challenge. (I'm hoping there is NOT a swimming component with an un planned capsize.   I ask particularly for your support as I am normally hate getting cold and the wet. So I thought I would choose an event which has a likelihood of being both!

 

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RACE REPORT

After an apprehensive night I was woken by the organiser phoning to say the Environment Agency had deemed the River Nene unsafe as it was swollen and burst its banks so the kayak section of the event was off.
However the duathlon was still going ahead so I set off this morning with mixed feelings.  Rather than just wait for the next event I thought I may as well find out what the Run Bike Run was like.

The event is held in a large hilly field high above the  picturesque in Northamptonshire. I arrived to a welcoming crowd of about 30 people. I was glad to find out that I was not the only first timer and the guy next to me didn't even have a mountain bike but a hybrid. The morning was cold with frost on the car but at least the sun was shining.  And there was no snow or rain so this should be a doddle!!!!!!! 

In the race briefing we were ominously warned to be careful of the run section by the river where the bank and river were a bit indistinguishable and to take care not to fall in.  It can't be that bad I thought.  So a course though a hilly field with two laps run, six laps of mountain biking and then a couple more laps running to finish off.

I was expecting to come last but not quite to see the other competitors disappear in the distance in the first 200 metres which included a little hop across a stream.  Not an auspicious start. But coming to a stile there was a queue to hop over so why the hurry?  Down another hill, across a little water and on we go.  Now for The "Swamp" section as the regulars fondly call it.  Slipping and slidding even on the flat bit, I saw the Swamp ahead.  The only way to tackle it is to keep ploughing through.  Mud and water up to mid calf but worse to come.  Running through increasingly deep water for a few metres and then through sheer "gloop"where competitors have had shoes sucked off their feet in previous runs! And just when the route started heading on slightly better ground up through the trees the route gets very steep and I grind to a walk.  Oh heavens I think.  This is just the first lap.  I plod to the end of the first lap and a cheer from spectators.  At least I hadn't been overtaken by the lead runner yet.

Lap two felt a bit better.  My stomach still felt a bit sick but I my muscles were warming up and I even felt as if I was beginning to enjoy it.  Lap two was uneventful so now on to the bike.  I had no problem identifying my bike as it lay a lonely vehicle in the start area.  Helmet on,  quick drink of juice and off we go.

The bike course was on the whole a different route to the run so you don't have to carry the bike over the stile.  But the first downhill was already muddy and rutted by the 35 competitors ahead of me and the first "little stream" nearly sent me flying.  Uphill and down another to the  waterlogged hollow in the field.  Having chosen too high a gear I struggled through the water feeling my feet cool as they dropped below water level but thinking positively at least it washed the mud off my trainers.  But immediately the slope goes uphill and I grind to a halt and have to get off and push.  As I hit the ridge I see a relative flat section.  The relief must have been visible on my face.  I got my breath back and tootled along.  (Speed was never a feature of this event for me.)  Round a marker and then gently downhill and then I see the drop and more water ahead.  Oh heck.  I squeeze the brakes a little in my wimpish way, anxious not to go too fast as the path gets steeper.  I stick to the grooves worn by those ahead but realise I just have to let go just try to keep my balance and pray.  Another water feature at the bottom stops me dead again so no chance of using that wonderful momentum to get me up the other side.  By this time I am beginning to despair and wonder if I can even complete the bike section.  I am only half way round the first bike lap and I have 5 more to go.  I keep going thinking of all that sponsorship.  (Yes it really really made a difference)  Another downhill, more waterlogged grass and another hill and I see a small group of marshalls and spectators ahead beside a narrow gate.  Now the thing is they were standing in front of a green sign which I didn't see until the next lap.  It was probably just as well as it read "Warning Steep Slope".  Encouraged by cheers of "Go Ann, Go for it,  I sensed something was coming up,  but not for the first time ignorance was bliss.  It was the steepest slope so far and the muddiest.  And the course weaved through the trees. The first part was not too bad but as I  steered to avoid hitting a tree (well no one had a camcorder to send a clip to "You've been Framed" the mud accumulated on my tyres and my brakes were definitely less than effective.

And just as I thought I had nearly made I skid sideways and hit the ground on my right side.  Winded but not hurt, I picked myself up and hurried to allow others behind to overtake.  Thank heavens no one was close behind.  The section I started to cycle again when I saw that EVERYONE ahead was walking up a very steep hill either pushing or carrying their bike so I did likewise.  Even pushing the bike up was tough.  Oh dear I though.  How on earth can I do five more of these.  I this point I can honestly say I was not having fun and wondered if I was going to finish.  " I have to". I kept saying to myself, "Giving up is not an option."  The final part of the lap was more gradual though still tough and muddy but I got there.  The second lap was tough but slightly better.  I won't bore you with an account of every minute of the cycle ride but I fell again at the "steep hill section" having read the sign this time and bashed my shin so knew a nice bruise would develop there later.  Recovering, the cycle experts amongst the spectators pointed out I had my handlebars round the wrong way as I pushed it down the rest of the hill.  That's how supportive and helpful people are ......though I am sure I would have noticed myself when I started peddling again.  The last 3 laps were slow but uneventful and I felt proud to negotiate all the waterlogged sections and up the other side without stopping (almost).  I was extremely relieved to finish the cycling though by now I was a lone cyclist and the top guys had already finished their run.
So dropping the bike I started to run and although my legs were a little like jelly it felt better to be running which I enjoy much more.  I felt positively fit as I glided across the stile and headed for The Swamp" for a third time.  This is in the bag now I thought and I am actually enjoying it.   The course was now truly churned up.  Wet and muddy so now that didn't matter I then slipped and fell at the edge of the Swamp and my right arm tore though some brambles.  Oh why did I take off my gloves after the cycle section.  I got going again
, crawled up the steepest hill part again and reaching the starting point. Thank heavens only one more lap and I am nearly there.  The last lap was uneventful.  I knew I was going to be fine and the sense of feeling I had tested my endurance and achieved something was great.

So at 2 hours after I started, I crossed the line with a few spectators remaining.   I was just hoping there still were some bacon butties left in the village hall afterwards.

Squelching back to the car I dismantled the bike, got it back in the car and then stripped off as my track suit bottoms were just sodden in water and mud.  I headed down to the hall and even ran down the hill feeling great and surprisingly my legs did not feel too tired.  In the sunshine lifting my head and looking from the Church on the hill with a lovely view of the River Nene and the village and I suddenly realised how pretty it was.  I hadn't noticed that somehow during the event.

After 3 cups of teas, lots of congratulations from other competitors and conversations with two other male first timers I was relieved to hear others say how hard they found it.  An unbelievably "energy sapping" course that catches out even the experienced competitors.  I didn't hear many say they would definitely do it again even when one guy was planning to enter an ultra marathon in a few months time.

So. The Verdict.  Am so glad I did it?.  You bet.  It was not always enjoyable at the time.  It was much much harder than I anticipated but the sense of achievement was immense.  And I feel I really justified all that wonderful sponsorship money.

There is another at end of February.  Will I do it ,  this time with Kayaking???   I have paid my entry fee and let's see how my memory of the tough bits fades after a nights sleep.  Well its an incentive to continue training........ And raise more money????

Thanks to the Quadrac guys for organising such a memorable and "different" event.  I did enjoy it REALLY.