Imperial win at Hillingdon Duathlon
Ed Hallett gives his account as Imperial take both first and third place.
Memories of a completely crappy rain-filled start to November were dried up in a flash as Sunday came around and the skies cleared for the 2013 Hillingdon Autumn Duathlon. The local race is a favourite among the club with a few podiums last year and a win courtesy of Swiss international Jean-Claude who sadly has now moved back home. Only 15min away by overground from Paddington, and on a purpose built mile long racetrack with no cars or pedestrians to contend with. The atmosphere was light-hearted as fourteen of Imperial Triathlon Club’s finest gathered outside the front of Hillingdon triathlete’s club house. The atmosphere inside was just as relaxed as the hosts seamlessly ran a faultless race day for us. The day’s events were split in two, with the women’s category heading out first, and the men’s category an hour later. This suited me just fine, as it would let the girls dry up the track a little for us from last night’s rain! The gun was shot and brandishing the new TriIC trisuit, Sophie Kirk quickly pulled out an early lead, with Ellie Howard only a few places behind. By the end of the first mile, sports scholar and running guru Sophie had pulled an unprecedented fifteen second lead on second place. The pack was however full of strong runners, meaning Fran, Sian and Ellie had to work hard to cling to the front contingency before transition. A hasty change of shoes, donning of helmets and awkward running in cycling cleats saw the girls exit transition and on to the ten mile bike time trial. The TriIC women’s team had set the pace for the race leaders during the run with Fran exiting transition in 10th, Sian in 11th and Ellie Howard in 8th. The cycle obviously suited Fran Capel as she put in the second fastest bike time of the day, only losing out to our own Sophie Kirk who was beginning to worry the boys in support. “37 second lead Sophie, slow down!” as she raced by only three miles into the course. Team newbies Victoria Kemp and Olivia Bentley looked strong throughout the course, continuing to overtake the opposition to loud and audacious encouragement from the boys. Before we knew it Sophie was out on the final run and nearing the finish line. Despite a desperate sprint to get there to cheer her on, she beat the boys to the finish to announce a 1st place smashing of the opposition, finishing nearly three minutes ahead of second place in the women seniors’ category. Notable finishers include another podium position from Fran in 3rd place, and Sian Morgan and Ellie Howard clocking 6th and 7th respectively. The sterling effort from Sophie did not go unnoticed, as Sky Sports HD came over for a 5-minute interview. The men’s race saw the sun rise higher and the temperatures become more bearable. With extremely high running standards, the leaders left the main pack for dust with Michael Kaye and Charlie Houston representing TriIC at the front, before a strong bike leg saw Ed Hallett claw back to a contending position. The track was smooth and warmed by the sun, giving the cyclists room to breathe as they negotiated the sharp hairpin bends of the course. With only a few very short hills to wake the legs up, a relatively flat course lends itself to a fast average pace. With a few laps to go of the cycle Ed Hallett overtook Michael Kaye in a fierce internal battle. The victor between the two gets to present the other with a second place medal which they have to wear for the next race. If the previous loser then wins, they get to pass on the second place medal of shame with as much gloating and abuse as deserved! A committed effort from Mike to try and keep up with Ed on the bike was in vain, and Mike had to watch as he disappeared out of sight. Newbie Daniel Tyrie rocked a superb first duathlon effort finishing 18th over all. Ed Hallett managed to maintain his lead from the bike to finish 13th despite Mike completing the second running leg a minute faster. Mike eventually crossed the line in 15th. Our top male finisher however, with a superb second run was Charlie Houston, finishing 5th, just missing out on a podium position! With sweat evaporating and legs wobbling we herded into the warmth of the club house and tucked into recovery drinks and banana cake, which was more like soft banana brownie: it was epic! So with Fran and Sophie carrying their alcoholic prizes back to their car, a contingency climbed on to their bikes and enjoyed a cycle home in the bright morning sun. Thank you to our sponsors Jaguar Land Rover for their continued support and the new racing kit!
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