OK that title is a bit of a false promise. You might not achieve this goal if you’ve raced here before, get a puncture or somehow get lost on arguable one of the easiest courses in the country. If none of these apply though, then there is a very good chance you will go a fair bit quicker than you ever have before. This was only my third ever event and I’d raced a challenging course only the week before. Even with this in mind and also managing to stack it getting off my bike in T2, I still managed to better my previous time by over 11 minutes. It is fair to say then that the Eton Dorney Triathlon course sure is quick and well worth the visit.

The relief and glory when finishing my last event at the ATW Grafham Triathlon. I’d go even better at Eton Dorney.

Why Is Eton Dorney Triathlon So Speedy?

The venue has much to do with this. The Eton Dorney name may ring a bell if you’re into rowing. It was indeed the venue for the regatta events at the 2012 London Games. When you arrive and get your first full view of the lake, you understand what makes it an ideal venue for water sports. Its length is very impressive indeed and you’ll get to experience this fully both on the bike and run.

You can hardly see the other end of the lake when looking down its entire length. Impressive it certainly is.

The swim itself is held in a portion of the lake nearest to the club house and transition area. It is very well marked with clear water, which makes it easy to spot other swimmers before you crash into them or vice-versa.

The bike route is rapid mostly because it is held on a well surfaced traffic free loop. You can take the quickest lines through corners and it is virtually pan flat too for good measure. There are two sharp bends to negotiate on each lap, but the long straight sections more than make up for this. You can properly get into your aerodynamic position and roll along at speed.

The run is also very quick. It is all held on well surfaced tarmac and is pretty much as flat as a pancake. You can also see runners way ahead of you, which can act like a carrot if you’re felling good. That does work the other way around too though. The hunter can also become the hunted!

My Event

I’d be competing at Eton Dorney Triathlon on the 22nd September- right towards the end the racing season. In typical British fashion, the blue skies all week were to be replaced with torrential downpours and storms. Several weather warnings were in force and I wondered whether even to make the effort the turn up. The £80 entrance fee was enough to make me give myself a firm talking to, remind myself that skin is waterproof and just MNFU.

The stupidly early alarm call and the drive through a proper deluge on the M25 had be questioning my sanity, but thankfully it eased off just in time for my arrival at the venue.

Straight away I couldn’t believe the number of competitors. After only three events, I’m really seeing how popular the sort of triathlon is. Clearly lots of folk have great taste. We all know what a wonderful sport it is.

The Faff Begins- Setting Up

The registration area was a proper hive of activity, but it was extremely well organised. The large marquee it was all held in proved especially useful too what with the very changeable weather. At one stage it was hard to hear others nearby over the din of the rain pounding the roof.

A much quieter registration area only a few minutes before go time.
This was one of the biggest transition areas I’d come across so far. Triathletes of all ages and sizes were busy setting up their kit.

Eventually, I made it to a spot I was happy with and so docked my bike and went about setting up my kit. My excellent tried and tested dry bags came in handy. One was used for my cycling shoes and kit, while the other would contain my trainers and running bits. The bags were checked and then checked again after my massive balls up during my last event. Trainers were left in the car on that occasion. I was in no rush to repeat that experience ever again!

I have a habit of getting a little anxious before a race and this in turn ends up affecting the ability of my brain. Every race so far has seen me fluff something up, which just wouldn’t usually happen if I was calm and relaxed. In my first race I forgot my running shoes, lost my keys at registration and broke a pair of sunglasses. At Grafram Water I ripped one of the legs on my wet suit, when I was running late and rushed to put it on. This time around I got to the start line to suddenly notice I’d forgotten to put my timing chip around my ankle and had left it by my bike. Running back to get it certainly didn’t provide the calm start I probably needed.

The Eton Dorney Triathlon- Swim

I once again started near the back because I deemed it to be a safer spot in the foot in the face arena. Getting in, myself and a few other competitors were surprised by the clarity of the water. It was cold, but the visibility under water was probably the best I’ve experienced in a triathlon so far.

After we started, I found myself making my way through the pack almost jumping from foot to foot. Drafting is really beneficial in swimming and I had no intention of getting stranded in no man’s land again like in my previous event. This ended up making it my speediest swim yet. I believe the course is a little short of the standard 1500 metres you’d expect to complete in an Olympic distance, but I still completed it in just over twenty seven minutes. Result.

I followed the advice on GTN, kicking extra hard on the run in to get the blood flowing to the legs.

Transition was my quickest one yet; it still took just over four minutes in total. My main issue appears to be the wetsuit, which I just can’t seem to whip off like other triathletes do. It’s a right pain watching others come and go, while you waste energy having a wrestling contest with your wetsuit leg. Work still to do in this arena.

Once wetsuit free though, everything else was completed quickly and I was soon on the bike and away for leg two of the Eton Dorney Triathlon.

The Eton Dorney Triathlon- Bike

I always love this leg of the race, as it is probably my strongest discipline. The bike loop in this race was great fun. Not having to worry about cars was the biggest advantage, however a large number of cyclists out on course added a different hazzard.

My position on my TT bike feels excellent and I am really able to get low and aerodynamic. This is all wonderful and feels excellent when you’re rolling along at 25+ miles per hour. Unfortunately though, riders were pulling out in front of me to over take other riders, which in turn had me easing off the gas or even reaching for the brakes on occasion. I don’t think it cost too much time, but the effort to get back up to speed each time certainly made it less of a consistent ride in the power output department. Oh well! I was still pleased to complete the 24.7 mile route in hour 5 minutes and a few seconds.

My second hand TT bike was brilliant and the newly fitted ISM saddle worked a treat too.

The Eton Dorney Triathlon- The Run

You never know how the legs will respond after hammering it for an hour or so on the bike. Thankfully, the jelly legs some other triathletes suffer with don’t really seem to affect me and it was no different on this occasion. I’d actually go on to run my quickest time over 10 km ever. I suppose I was just on a good day.

The running course at the Eton Dorney Triathlon is pretty much pan flat and all on silky smooth tarmac. Maintaining a pace of around 6 minutes 40 seconds a mile was very manageable and I caught runner after runner along the route. Nobody caught me, which is always a bonus and a complete contrast to my last event. The wheels certainly fell off on that one.

The weather certainly helped. There was hardly any wind and the deluge during the second half meant there was no risk of overheating. Running in the rain is actually a very fun experience I’ve come to learn. That will never be the case with cycling though. Riding in the wet will only ever be grim.

I also think consuming a caffeine gel on the way out of T2 certainly made a huge difference. I hadn’t done this before and certainly felt an injection of energy and alertness. These popular gels are well worth using as are these energy blocks during the bike leg. Plenty of carbs are provided and I found them to be very easily to digest out on course.

In the end I ended up catching another competitor just before the finishing line and crossed it in 39 minutes and 53 seconds. Knackered I certainly was, but I was pleased to finish strongly and with a time I wasn’t expecting if I am honest with you.

There was a great atmosphere out on course with plenty of support along the way and at the finish.

Overall Result & Reflection

My goal had been to better my previous best time of 2 hours 29 minutes and 50 odd seconds. I expected this course to be quicker, but certainly not by over ten minutes. A combination of the excellent course and my good form on the day allowed me to finish in 2 hours 18 minutes and twenty seven seconds. That is certainly a result I am very proud of in my first season as a triathlete.

It was a good enough time to help me achieve 19th position overall in all age categories from over 300 competitors. I was also third overall in the 40+ race and would have placed second if my transitions had been anywhere close to the two chaps who finished ahead of me.

This result really puts fire in the belly for the upcoming duathlon I will be competing in at the end of October. This event is a qualifier for the European Championship in 2025. I suspect I won’t quite be quick enough to be successful this year, but it will be good to measure myself against some of the best age-groupers in the region. I might even surprise myself and do better than expected too. Who knows?