Conditions – excellent

For those non-Brits amongst the T2A tribe the Virgin London Triathlon is the biggest tri in the world with over 12,000 participants taking part over the weekend and probably double that in spectators. A great expo, a fabulous atmosphere and sunshine combined to make this a very enjoyable weekend.

The plan was to share with Jan Tharma at his London residence (the Hilton in Canary Wharf) but his work commitments left me making the journey by myself. Arrived at Gatwick after a reasonable flight and lugged the bike across London via the Gatwick express. A fabulous suite had been laid on by JT and I detected a note of disappointment in the faces of the girls on the front desk when they heard that he was not checking in. Had a few zzzs and then headed off into central London. Put the bike together and then turned in early doors

Saturday brought cloudless skies and decided to head over early to the Excel centre in Docklands and register. Had plenty of time to take in the Expo. Got a great deal on GU. Buy one pack for 36 quid and get another one free! Checked out what you could see of the course- the dark, dark waters of the Victoria docks. Temp 19 degrees c. Wetsuits and goggles compulsory.

The afternoon saw me doing a solo 15/15/15. Took the bike for a spin around Canary Wharf, past the offices of my previous employer, ran along the banks of the Thames and then walked 15 mins to a leisure centre, had a 15 minute swim for $3.60 and then had a 15 minute walk back. Set the bike up and then wandered over to Jamie’s Italian Kitchen for a solo pasta party.

Woke on Sunday with a “fuzzy head” and really not feeling great. Taxi to the Excel centre at 0515 for a 0700 start. As I was walking in I ran into an old colleague, Adam Gordon, from Riyadh Triathletes who is now in Oman and knows the Oman foursome (sounds dodgey). Adam used to beat me but he had put on a few pounds since then and I fancied my chances. Racked up. The transition zones are just massive at the Excel centre and you really need a Garmin with GPS to relocate your kit. I was in the second wave of the day comprising over 460 competitors. Water was a pleasantly black 19 degrees which was welcome after the unpleasantly black cold of Arctic in Aarhus. The swim was straightforward- one lap of a very long and thin rectangle. It was quite busy but found some clear water and tried to keep an even rhythm and swim easy. Disappointed on exiting to find that I had only done 34 mins so was even more determined to hammer the bike. A flat straight bike course down along the embankment as far as Westminster, with a few fast underpasses and some undulating flyovers made for a fast time and despite the bumps and my front left arm rest collapsing for the last 5km I managed a 1hr and 4 mins bike leg. Raced through T2, lost my bearings on racking my bike, ran over 300m to get to the run start and was out onto the course. This comprised an uninspiring 4 laps of 2.5km each along the banks of the Royal Victoria Docks. The first couple of laps were fine, despite tight quads, but as more waves got onto the course it became very crowded. I past Adam after about 7km. I was aiming for minimum sub 2hrs 30mins with an ideal race time of 2 hrs. 25mins. Put the foot on the gas for the last lap and was delighted to cross the finish line in a PB of 2: 26: 14 with the added surprise that I had gone sub 40 mins for the 10k with a 39:58, a personal Pb over any form of 10K. A good day in my office.

Would I do the London triathlon again? Probably not for a while. This was my third experience. The pre event communication with regards to overseas athletes was poor. The course gets very crowded especially on the run. However there is a great atmosphere and there is the opportunity to raise money for a number of worthy charities. It’s very much the “people’s triathlon” with a large number losing their Triathlon virginity. You see all shapes and sizes and even people competing on those collapsible bikes you take on the tube. This year I supported “Kids Get Going” a charity which raises money to buy wheelchairs for disabled children. My target was 750 pounds and with JT’s, Venny’s and Mr National’s most generous donations I should just about get over the line. If you haven’t yet sponsored me, but would like too, please cut and paste the attached link into your browser: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/DavidHunt1

PS Arrived at Victoria station on Monday afternoon to find the Gatwick Express closed for two days due to a burst water main causing a landslide on the track. Commandeered the nearest cabbie to belt down to Gatwick and just made it with 15 mins to spare- 165 quid poorer. Did get upgraded on the way back which was just the job!