ITU Qualification Attempt 1 – Dambuster Duathlon – March 2012
My search for an ITU qualification began at the Dambuster Duathlon in March 2012. This went horribly wrong and apparently it’s not possible to run or cycle successfully on the following ailments of the knee:
• Hamstring fibula insertion tear
• Numerous blood clots
• Bone marrow oedema
• Floaty cartilage

After surgery and 3 months off I gradually got back into training. I decided to join the Off The Couch Fitness “racing yard” with the guidance of Steve Clark, in January this year. The training plans were always thoroughly planned and well thought out, taking into account all the training sessions I already enjoyed doing as well as any work commitments. Despite this, the training was not always smooth running and slick. The 5 months of training between January and May, saw me completing the following events:

• Sneaking out of work twice
• Crying hysterically halfway up hills
• Running in knee deep snow at various hours of the night
• Skidding down the road on my head in the middle of Lincoln and taking a good proportion of skin/flesh off my face.
• Falling off my turbo in attempt to switch the light off without getting off the turbo to get a disco effect in my hallway
• Attempting to remove a cow with MASSIVE horns from a hole in the fence
• Getting so “in the zone” and forgetting to turn around on a run, Forrest Gump style
• Asking people to not buy me birthday cake as it was 3 days before a race.
(Anyone who knows me well, will identify that the last on the above list was by far the most painful, commitment testing event to ever happen in my life)

ITU qualification attempt number 2 – Cambridge Duathlon – April 2013
Unfortunately, the Cambridge race did not go to plan. The following events are explanations for my poor performance that day…..
• I got locked out of my friend’s house in the rain for hours
• My alarm did not go off on the morning of the race
• I shamelessly kissed James Cracknell (that’s enough of a distraction for anyone, especially when he is donning the lycra – much to my delight )
• I helped to dress a random man into his tri suit (not James Cracknell unfortunately)
The results of this race are best kept under wraps and not published in any way. This is the end of the story for attempt number two.

ITU qualification attempt number 3 – Clumber Park Duathlon – May 2013
So a good start to the day, with my alarm deciding to wake me up this time and a nice little 5am start saw us driving off to Worksop with no hitches. The beginning went smoothly, with no eventful happenings and so it was looking promising for a good performance.

The 10K run is an out and back course which went without any problems, I felt comfortable all the way round and ensured I held a little back for the rest of the race. It was also really nice to see all the other Lincsquadders on the route which gave me both comfort and the incentive to look like I was working hard!

The 40K bike was also blissfully uneventful and I managed to pick off 5 girls on the way so on the last 5K run I knew they were hot on my heels and I had to get a shift on! (Kindly reminded by the transition troll AKA Mr Binch) I used the out and back course to identify my position in the race so on turning point I knew I couldn’t slack off or allow anyone past me! In the end, I completed it in 2 hours and18 minutes- which is 28 minutes better than my last attempt at Clumber Park 2 years ago! With a big smiley face, a nice bag of minstrels and chocolate milk we made our way home.

In the knowledge that I was 2nd in my age group (F30-34) it made me realise I might be in with a chance of qualifying, but I managed to keep a lid on my excitement until I received some confirmation.

This confirmation came about 2 minutes before having to teach a 2 hour Chemistry revision class on Thursday 16th May in which I then had to try and explain to 35 year 11 students why I was acting slightly bonkers and had a habit of breaking into dance at inopportune times. I really had done it! I had achieved what I deep down thought was well out of my reach. I had qualified for a place at the ITU World Championships in Ottawa, Canada, August 2013!

The cheesy bit…
It has been a crazy, intense few months, but I have loved all the achievements along the way. It really wouldn’t have been possible without everyone’s input from the club. Lincsquad really is fantastic and 3 years ago, I made the best decision, to become a member of this great, friendly, all inclusive club. At the risk of sound really cheesy I just want to just give a special mention to the following people:

Steve Clark – For being an ace coach who has the answer to every stupid question I ask
Paul Fytche – For recommending “off the couch fitness” training plans and bullying me into numerous hill sessions
Phil Binch – For looking after me on so many rides and shouting at me in races
Sheehan Quirke – For making those winter kilometre reps a little bit easier
Dave Hinch – For the stern talking to and virtual newspaper beating
Alan Woodcock – For all the good advice
James Cracknell – For allowing me to kiss him whilst looking horrifically bad and sweaty.

Chris Wright (The Husband) – For putting up with all the times I’ve been home late, the alarms going off at stupid o’clock in the morning, the moaning when it doesn’t go according to plan, but most importantly for not divorcing me after my illicit kiss with James Cracknell…

Canada here I come!

Did I tell you I kissed James Cracknell?

The third year of the Paul Kirk North Lincs Cyclosportive has been a resounding
success! A record number of riders took to the course this year, 290 riders this
year, the biggest number in the events history so far.

Riders keenly registered from 7am on this some what blustery morning,
anticipating the ride ahead, no one knew just how windy the ride would be.
Amongst local riders we welcomed cyclists from local areas such as Sheffield,
Barnsley and regular friends from Selby Cycling Club but riders have started to
attend from further afield as the events reputation spreads.

The course was well sign posted as it is every year, one of the main attractions
of our sportive, as well as the plentiful home made cakes!

The wind certainly started to take its toll on the riders as they headed along
Trent bank only a few miles in! By 10 riders started to arrive at the first feed
station, in it’s regular place in Market Rasen to enjoy the previously mentioned
cake and enjoy a few minutes shelter from the conditions before making there way
onwards.

Entrants then made their way on their chosen course, either the 100 mile for the
extremely brave or the 100km for the slightly less brave but courageous all the
same.

By 1pm riders were arriving back to HQ, exhausted from battling the elements for
hours.

The new results system in place assisted our excellent timekeepers in producing
the results fast, so much so that next year the intention is to roll out a near
virtual large screen results screen that will be updated every 15 minutes with
latest results. Next year we will be at capacity of 500 riders so remember to enter early as there may not be any places left on the day itself!

On a personal point of view, the sportive was started as a fund raiser that
everybody would enjoy yet would remain cheap to enter, some sportives can cost
as much as £45 to enter! Years of riding sponsored events got me to the stage
where people would run and hide as they knew I was coming with my dreaded
sponsor form (others know what I mean here). This event, with all the voluntary
effort, will raise thousands in a day and remain an enjoyable social event in
our early year calendar, bringing Lincsquad together along with other local
riders and clubs ready for the race season ahead. The only racing involved here
will be to get a place on what will be a strictly limited to 500 places event!

Until next year…….

Matt

Results

A few new bikes and lots of new faces especially in the female division meant an almost capacity entry of 59! With both defending champions Steve G and Rachel Love absent who was going to step up, throw down the gauntlet, grab the bull by the horns and at the same time stop me from using up all the usual metaphors on only the first round?

As usual the weather was playing havoc with many questioning if it was actually a real Lincsquad time trial due to the lack of rain. Jon Dixon breaking the golden rule and mentioning the “r word” just as the first rider rolled up to the line.

And what a first rider! Who better to start the series off than the clubs no.1 WAG Clair Dolby? One by one the riders lined up and waited the standard one minute as the Timekeepers Vicky, Elinor and Annie Dolby set them off and counted them back in. As ever Kev was on the start line to hold the riders as they prepared themselves for the next 9.8miles

Amongst the 59 riders 25 posted PB’s despite the blowy side wind that was as good as 90 degrees to the route so was present out and back! Personal best riders were Clair Dolby, Bill Censi, Rob Walsh, Bob Taylor, Ewan Chesman, George Coghlan, Luke Osborn, Emma Wright Phillips, Neil Barker, Matt Rigall, Bevan Jones, Vicki Stewart, Sallie Joseph, Philip Marshall, Richard Walker, Gary Horner, Andrew Bradley, Alex Bradley, Nick Stonehewer, Ruth Wilson, Pam Challen, Matthew Goodwin, Stuart Barnes, Paul Fytche aaaaaaaaaaaaaand Phil Cox!!!

Steve Clark and Jeff Chappill marshalled the crossing and despite the chance of increased rail traffic due to the ongoing work near Doncaster only a few riders got stopped.

Scunthorpe Poly rider Richard Walker setting an excellent early season time with Chris Spavin in 2nd place edging out Claude Butlers George Coghlan to 3rd. In the ladies Emma Wright Phillips chicked more than a few guys to lead the girls with Ruth Wilson second and less than 23s behind her Nicky Robinson.

Big thanks to all riders helpers and supporters for turning up. Round 2 in two weeks!

Results are below

http://www.lincsquad.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=4644.0

Whether you are an experienced multi-sport athlete or not, you can play a part in this great race.

Remember for solo entries the race is the European Quadrathlon Championships, the British Quadrathlon Championships, a World Cup Series race and a British Trophy series race ……. WOW. For the European Championships, thanks to our event sponsor Keyo Agricultural Services Ltd, Brigg we have prize money totalling 500 euro’s.

But remember this race is not just for the experienced Quadrathletes, there are plenty of first timers taking part, testing themselves over 4 disciplines, so if you feel the urge, its time to make that move, get your entry in, still 2 whole months to train!

For those that want to take part as a team we have two options;
- Corporate Team entry, for 2 to 4 work colleagues, with the winning team being awarded free entry to Brigg Sprint Triathlon in September and of course the Corporate Team Trophy;
- for teams of friends and club members who want to test themselves against others and potentially enter the race as a solo next year, the winning team will receive the Team Trophy.

More details can be found at www.lincsquad.co.uk/events/brigg-bomber/

If you have any questions or queries regarding the race please email events@lincsquad.co.uk

I am truly saddened to inform you that our friend & club mate Christian Brown passed away yesterday, Monday 18th February.

Christian was involved in a serious cycling accident 6 days ago and was airlifted to Hull Royal Infirmary in a critical condition, unfortunately he never recovered.

I’m sure like myself you will have many fantastic memories of our time with Christian, his strength, his determination, his will to succeed, which will stay with me forever, he will be greatly missed by us all.

Our thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to Christian’s family, girlfriend and many friends.

Farewell my friend, Rest in Peace