As this year’s racing season draws to a close it is time you were enlightened with the fantastic results from all our multitalented multi-sports participants. It is hard to believe that it has passed so quickly. It all began with a very muddy duathlon in Cirencester and reached a crescendo in Tenby with an amazing Ironman event.

This year has seen an increase in multi-sport enthusiasm for both competing, purposes of cross-training and social engagement. The multisport training and social weekend in Pembrokshire in April was a hit. Various Les Croups members have also invested in anything from high spec two-wheel transport to super tight lycra or just numerous pairs of goggles. And boy, hasn’t it been fun?! There has been many amusing and unusual moments: triathletes ‘lost in transition’; exiting transition half dressed; being half way to an Ironman event without a wetsuit; being plucked from the wild seas of Tenby by hunky, young men in a RIB, and the most amazing technique of walking during the swim stage, ‘it was the only way to get around the buoy’. Please see the ‘Multisport round up gallery’ for pictorial evidence. Lots of lessons were learnt, or were they? Let’s see what happens next season…

The 2012 season will be packed with new challenges. Within a few hours drive of Cardiff there is a massive choice of aquathlons, duathlons and triathlons, and combined with a variety of terrains there is something for everyone. Most are expertly organised by local groups and the enthusiasm for encouraging the newbie is superb. How can you resist?

In June the Ironman 70.3 UK take place and Exmoor is the backdrop for this event. It is reputed to be the 'toughest 70.3 in the world'. Five Les Croupier triathletes have signed up and entries are filling fast, so enter NOW to avoid disappointment! This also gives us another excuse to organise another training and social weekend somewhere in Europe leading up to this event, so watch this space!

Virgin Active London Triathlon entries are open too, guaranteed entry before 30 November, then to a ballot. The event is later this year due to the Olympics, and take place on 22 and 23 September. It’s ‘the largest triathlon in the world’, an awesome spectacle and we’re planning a weekend of watching and competing, do join us.

There will also be organised training events and we will be returning to both Llanelli Docks and Barry for more open water swimming. Local cycle rides are a must too. All these multi-sport plans are intended to appeal to those in Les Croups who are tri-curious, want to compete, or intend to include it as part of a more varied training programme. More details of a range of events will be advertised in 2012.

Please see below for details of the results for 2011. If there is an event or result that we have missed please let us know and we will happily include this.

Multi-sport results 2011

Three Peaks Cyclocross. 25 October

‘The course was very wet making the boggy sections extra boggy’ Jules carter 4hr 12 mins.

Simon Nurse 4hrs 8mins.

Ironman Wales. 11 September

Richard (I want to be an Ironman) Self 12hr 56mins

Poppit Sands Aquathlon. 4 September

James Braun 45mins 14secs 17/56

Hereford Triathlon. 3 July

Tom Jeffery 56:52 27/187

Claire Beatty 1:01:44 63/187

Natalie Hindmarsh 1:06:20 102/187

Gill McCue 1:06:46 108/187

Fran Machin 1:11:13 147/187

Pembrokeshire Triathlon. 2 July

Stephen Paterson 02:31:10 14th
Peter Kellam 02:39:16 34^th
Katie Beecher 02:49:41 61^st

Richard Self 02:49:41 62st

Cotswold Triathlon. 8 May

Katie Beecher 1:05:46

Sarah McCarthy 1:14:16

ISCA Duathlon. 17 April

James Braun 1:11:34 39th
Jerry Cleall Harding 1:11:51 41st
Martin Pinnell 1:15:18 52nd
Claire Beatty 1:20:06 70th
Malin Falck 1:27:20 90th
Sasha Macken 1:27:48 91st
Fran Machin 1:31:45 98th
Natalie Hindmarch 1:32:31 99^th

Hereford Duathlon. 17 April

Katie Beecher was the winner! 1:44:33

Cirencester Duathlon. 13 February

Gill McCue 1:53:11 177/255

Malin Falck 2:00:47 204/255

Fran Machin 2:04:58 211/255

Clare Johnson 2:12:40 227/255 1st in age group!

5k Swimathon, Cardiff International Pool in April

Howard Kent ranked 5th in the UK for age group! His swim time was 1:20:35. Improving his PB by 1min 37secs He attributes this superb improvement to a Marie Curie Charity training session with Duncan Goodhew in January.

Phil

Hi there,

With this years triathlon season well underway, we are hosting an open
water wetsuit testing session, to give triathlon clubs especially the
chance to try out a full range of wetsuits in open water with no
obligation to buy.This session is due to be held:

Sunday 17th July 2011
at Celtic Manor Resevoir
NP18 1HQ

1.00pm-3.00pm

At this session, we will be offereing advice on wetsuit fitting along
with other aspects of the sport such as nutrition etc. There will be a
range of tri gear available for browsing and a variety of special
discounts and free samples!

If you would like more information on this event please give us a call
on 02920 090800 or feel free to call me on my mobile: 07528137779

Hope to see you soon

Best Regards

Rach


MOTI CARDIFF
Run-Fitness-Triathlon Specialist Stores

The first run is easy.......

 ISCA Duathlon Sunday 17th April 2011

James Braun MV W 01:11:34 39th
Jerry Cleall Harding MSV B 01:11:51 41st
Martin Pinnell MSV W 01:15:18 52nd
Claire Beatty FS N 01:20:06 70th
Malin Falk FS N 01:27:20 90th

Sasha Macken FS N 01:27:48 91st
Fran Machin FS N 01:31:45 98th

Natalie Hindmarch FS N 0 1:32:31 99th

....next the cycle.........

Whilst at the Hereford Duathlon a mere 35 miles away.........Katie won the senior ladies in 1hr 44mins and 33 seconds.

and finally.........the second run.

 Well done to all of our duathletes (and Katie in particular).

The race distances were 10km run, 40km bike, 5km run. I went for it from the off, challenging for a top spot and pushing all the way. Entering transition in 4th place in a time of 32.40 (the 10km distance was out by around 300m) and alongside the other 3 athletes, I cast aside any thoughts of an age-group place and decided to push for one of the 3 available all expenses paid elite places. Hopping onto the bike, a small gap appeared. I was drifting off the pace. 30 seconds later the soft 'whump, whump,whump' of a disc wheel went past. 4th had now become 5th. Then another 'whump, whump, whump'. Then another. And another, and another. The shoulders started to drop. 'Whump, bloody, whump, bloody, whump'. By the end of a thoroughly disheartening cycle leg, I was in 62nd place and had dropped 58 places. My second run was nearly as good as my first (16.30 approx) and I recovered around 30 of those places, but any chance of selection for the world's had disappeared faster than a plain looking wannabe on 'I'm a celebrity x factor ice dancer'. The point being, specificity reaps rewards and there's no short cut to at least a little concession to the other disciplines. These days I'm less deafened by the 'whump, whump, whump' and more hassled by the 'pad, pad, pad' of pacey runners (this time proving that cycling effort is no short cut to running fitness).

However, courtesy of one of my racing and training buddies at Cardiff JIF - Cyclo cross racer Donald Grey - I think we have found the answer to those cycling prayers. The footage below will show you how to avoid training on the turbo trainer,  dodge Maindy on a Wednesday night or lie in on a Sunday morning. It will also appeal to steampunk fans (like Matt T) and scrapheap challenge addicts. Those with health and safety concerns, please look away now.

Simon

Tip: Click on the links above to obtain some proper information from proper grown ups who write proper articles all spell checked an' all.

One of my remaining sports ambitions is to do the Norseman extreme triathlon in Norway. It won't be this year, nor next (probably), but it's definitely on the agenda. Whilst trawling Youtube for triathlon pieces, I came across this excellent short film that tells you everything you need to know about this super difficult, super silly and super beautiful race. It costs a few quid (or krone) and it requires a heck of a commitment, but I challenge you to watch it and not feel inspired. If you get super tempted to the point of entry, you've missed the longship for 2011. Entries will open again around October time and with around 1000 people chasing 250 places, the process is a bit of a lottery. Still, Charlie got his tour around the chocolate factory didn't he? Enjoy.

No, it's not the Hoff. It's Les Croupiers triathletes in training.

The dates for the social multi-sport weekend have been decided. It will take place on the first May bank holiday weekend, either from 29 of April to 1 May, or 30 April to 2 May. Further details will be available soon. The idea is to get people who are tri-curious to get the chance to try all three disciplines, including open water swimming and road cycling, and get some advice and 'coaching' from those who are more experienced, and for those with more experienced to get a social training weekend in before the start of the triathlon season. The aim is also to make it affordable, family friendly and flexible so that those who would like to make it a run-only weekend they can do so. The location will be somewhere near to water (obviously) that is safe for swimming and close to a good pub (more importantly). More details coming soon...

If you can't wait for the start of the triathlon season, there are several events that can help you get kick started with your post-Christmas training, for example:

• Cirencester Off-road Duathlon, 13 February, 2011 (www.triferris.com)
• Tuffman Duathlon, 6 February, 2011 (www.humanrace.co.uk)
• Winter Aquathlon Series located in Mid-Wales (http://ceristtriathlon.org.uk)

Have a Happy Multi-sporting 2011!!

So if you think poor weather is a show stopper, think again. Have a look at the footage below. Warning: You may need to watch it whilst wrapped in a warm blanket and cupping a large mug of Mulligatawny soup (and I hope your Flemish is good....).

"Well it was either a new yacht, or a season of triathlon'Last week Phil forwarded a letter to me  from Welsh Triathlon, to gauge my reaction and chat about our response. The letter dealt exclusively with a membership drive for British (Welsh) Triathlon and the cost of day licenses for non-members. In an effort to increase membership, Welsh Triathlon are planning to increase day license fees from £2 to £8 (yes, £8) to drive non-members towards membership. Triathletes that do convert, will receive a code that entitles them to £5 off 2011 membership fees (unclear as to what they will be).  So if you are a casual triathlete, decide to do a few events - Llandow perhaps - and don't feel the £51 fee for non triathlon club members (£40 fee for club members) is worth it, you'll end up forking out an additional £18 to Welsh Triathlon. As race organisers for Llandow, Phil and I think this is disgraceful and will impact significantly on our event.

We couldn't let this lettergo unanswered, so below is a transcript of the e-mail sent to both Welsh and British Triathlon. The response? Radio silence has been maintained.

Hello Richard,   I'd like to add to Phil's comments (and thanks for responding Phil).

By way of introduction, I'm the Vice-Chair of our triathlon section and Phil and I promote triathlon both inside and outside of the club. I've added one further name to the circulation list; James Taylor at Welsh Triathlon. I think it's appropriate that James is copied in on our comments.  

I cannot convey how disappointed I was to hear that the day license fees are rising by such a substantial amount. Our event has been very successful in converting runners into multi-sport athletes off the back of curiosity, something largely achieved by our low price and enthusiasm. Next year's series - should it go ahead - would be the 5th in 6 years and over the whole of that time, our £10 entrance fee (plus license) has paid for the hire of the motor racing track, the cost of refreshments and an extensive prize purse that extends to each category. Effectively we do it for nothing, despite needing the personal commitment provided by the volunteers for each race. Following the communiqué from Welsh Triathlon 'encouraging' triathletes to join the WT/BT I cannot convey how much faith I've faith I've lost in the sport. I think the comment that sums up this new approach is found in the 6th paragraph of the letter from WT, dated 29th October 2010:   

 'The race organiser will also benefit as that code will trigger a £5 kick back to them as well.'  

I think the discussion around 'kickbacks' seems to sum up our problem with the new process more eloquently than any case I could make and lays bare what the real issue is; money generation from participants.   It seems to LC Tri, that we provide a small but regular income stream from BT, yet receive very little in return. As it stands we are considering our position and deciding whether we wish to be part of a sport that in an age of unprecedented cutbacks, is looking to increase its fees for the casual triathlete - in an already hugely expensive discipline - by 400%. There is the possibility of course, that we may be offered 'designated novice' status for our race series, however, there is a wider principal at stake and we want our event to be open to all; novice/elite/club member/non-club member. Should sport be about community involvement, health, fitness, competition and wellbeing? Or should it be about the relentless accumulation of funds?    

Apologies for the strong tone of this e-mail, however we do feel strongly about the issue. Grass roots sports will only flourish if it is allowed to - ever increasing costs are stifling its ability to do so.  

Regards,   Simon

We appreciate that you may not feel the same as us and support Welsh Triathlon's efforts. As Phil and I are now debating the future of the Llandow Duathlon - there is little point in putting the events on if athletes are put off by the £18 pricetag - we would very much welcome your comments. A Forum post to debate the issue has been setup here. Please note, that only feedback from Les Croupiers members (running or tri) will be taken into account.