Blessington Triathon is a race and a social event

The standard at all triathlons, duathlons and aquathons is high these days. The local village fete could hold a charity race and it would attract top racers determined to find a podium somewhere. An example of this is the Blessington Triathlon. A charity event, organised as a partnership between Blessington Sailing Club and Downs Syndrome Kildare, this race started three years ago with some solid results, but for the past two years the winning time has been on a par with any event in the country. This is a positive. There are no giveaways any more. There is always a top performer in every race against whom you can compare yourself. No triathlete can be slagged off for choosing a local race over a national race because it is “easier”. They are all hard and the results show this. I entered the race on the recommendation of club mates who had done it. The race organiser is Willie Purcell who runs good races. He also ran the National Duathlon Championships this year. This is a well organised, friendly, race. 

The first thing I liked was the reasonable start time of 10am. Allowing for registration and bike racking, this meant I didn’t have to get out of bed at some unholy hour as happens time and again with triathlon races. The location, at Blessington Sailing Club is a scenic one. It is easy to find via Google Maps and I got there no problem from Dublin (via the N81). I drove down a laneway, parked the car in a field and walked down to registration in the club house overlooking the lake. Registration was easy and tea, coffee and snacks were available for all. I stood chatting to members of my club and we agreed this was a great venue for a race. The early fog was lifting to leave sunshine behind. I racked my bike and began to get ready for the race. This mostly included applying Vaseline around my wetsuit chafed neck. Before long it was race briefing time and then into the water. It was warm enough. The lakes seem pretty warm at the moment. 

The Olympic race’s mass start was a bit silly. Unnecessary sprinting at the start by swimmers who inevitably slowed. I had one lad climb on my back, but I pushed him off and moved on. The swim seemed slow as while the big yellow markers were highly visible, taking an exact line seemed hard. Perhaps there was a current in the water. A couple of swimmers seemed to be miles ahead by the first marker. I slogged through the rest of the swim. It was a triangular shaped course, with the furthest marker seeming a long way from the finish. I felt land under me and ran out of the water into transition where I struggled a bit to get out of the wetsuit (my ;legs seem wider this year J). 

Then it was onto the bike for two laps of a 21k course. It was a fast enough course with some harder undulating sections and it was quite technical in places. The only area I found a bit scary was on the N81 where cars were trying to get past by coming too close to the bike. I was in the TT tuck position and I could have touched two of the cars that passed me. I’d also note that I did not see a motorbike official and this is badly needed. I gave a lift to a few riders along the way and this is not right. Drafters should respect faster riders and drop back out of the draft zone. If not, they should be caught and penalised. I gradually worked my way through the field and was pleased to finish the bike feeling fine. I drank around 700ml on the bike, so I expected to get through the majority of the run with no more fluids. Sections of the run are a bit horrible. It starts with a hill, then you do more hills, then you go back around a loop on the course to take a different route up to the top of the same hill, before running back down the bike course to the finish. 

I was happy with the race. I chatted to other finishers at the end and to club mates before getting a cup of tea, retrieving my bag and having a nice warm shower in the club house. I then had more tea and cake. The atmosphere outside was good and people were starting to collect their bikes and gear. The prizes for first places were given out and after this I went home. I had been an easy race all around. There have subsequently been issues with the race results, but this is to do with the company hired for this and I feel sorry for the organisers. Hopefully these issues will be quickly resolved and the remaining prizes dished out. Would I do it again, I would. As a sharpener for other events, it would be hard to beat. Do I recommend it, yes I do. I’d make it the club race and bring all the new to tri club members there for their first race. It is not just a race, it is a social event. I haven’t drunk so much tea in years.