My Triathlon Journey

Last Saturday was the Sussex Cross Country running Championships in Bexhill. I was racing as a first year Under 15 in what would prove to be a hard race with strong competitors. The weather was forecasted as windy, cold and heavy rain. A top 5 finish would send me straight to National Inter Counties, wearing a Sussex vest.

The morning of the race came, and we left early so I could walk the course and be prepared for the race ahead. When we arrived, the rain seemed to be holding off, the start hill seemed fairly muddy but the ground wasn’t too water-logged.

The Venue

The race was held at Little Common, Bexhill near Hastings. It was a small park, a 1km and a half around the perimeter, with a wooded area covering most of the top and middle and a playing field bordering the road below.

The Course

The course started on a long gradual uphill before turning left at the top into a grass open area. This then looped round an open area of parkland before we headed into the woods which by now was starting to get cut up. We briefly came back into the open again then headed back into the woods. This took us to the furthest part of the course including a very short steep uphill that tested the legs. This then brought us back round to the long, grassy straight alongside the road which was very heavy and hard going. My race was a two-lap course, with each lap being 2km long. There were a few races prior to mine, so it would become quite churned up by the time it came to my race. The constant rain didn’t help matters either, so the decision was made to wear 12mm spikes.

The Race

My race had a field of just over 50, and with the muddier hill to start, it was fast from the gun. I managed to get to the front (I prefer a hill start), and when I reached the peak there was five of us together. Going into the woods, there was an effort which shook the group to three of us, including my teammate. Coming out of the woods onto the exposed straight, the wind battered painful icy wind against my face, so I tucked in at the back. Going onto the grass flat at the end of the 1st lap the pace increased and we had about a 15 second gap on the group behind. Up the starting hill for a second time the legs were hurting now and my competitor (Owen) made a break, so it was me and my teammate (Jude) together. We stayed with each other for the rest of the lap and now we were nearing the home stretch, it looked set for a sprint finish. With 200m to go I put in a surge but Jude, who was just in front, responded and beat me by a second at the line.

I took 3^rd place and my club, I was racing for Brighton and Hove AC, won the 1^st place overall team medal. I was really happy with my performance, and by coming in the top 5 it meant I would be automatically selected for the National Inter Counties at Loughborough in March, representing Sussex.