Gael Force West
West Coast Multi-Sport in Ireland
Bruce Duncan - Team adidas Terrex / 05.09.2011
I flew over on Thursday and had a quiet evening, getting my bike back together and finding that the baggage handlers had dropped it, and despite good padding, had managed to bend a few teeth! Not a good start, so with a wee spanner I bent them back, and took the bike out for a test ride, just a short one to Westport Quay to recce the finish of the race. It had been an amazing day, and the sunset was fantastic over the bay.
Friday morning I set off with Brian Keogh to register and then recce the course. Brian had very kindly offered to show me the route, and to point out all the tricky and interesting parts of the course. With such a short fast race it was crucial to me to know all the ins and outs of the route, where to go hard on the bike, and where to take it very easy. The weather was atrocious, driving horizontal rain, cold and windy, perfect for me to be out racing, but the forecast for Saturday was to improve.
At the base of a very cloudy Croagh Patrick Brian pointed out the route, and then very kindly, the cloud lifted to show the full peak, a striking cone of loose rock at the top that I would have to race up and down.
After checking out the final short off-road section, which I’d be riding on a road bike, I thought I’d probably run it, depending on the situation, as it was slightly daunting and it would reduce the chance of a puncture, but also because with a very sore thumb sustained from a fall a few weeks ago, the task of holding the bars would be very painful. After a pasta feed, getting my kit sorted and setting my alarm for 4a.m. (!!), I went to sleep.
The alarm call was not overly pleasant. But I jumped up, got dressed and joined with some other racers in the breakfast room, all bleary eyed, but excited about the race. Jumping on the bus with about 100 other people we drove to the start at Glassilaun Beach. It was a lovely morning, and the views along the road were great.
Finally standing on the beach, eyeing up all the opposition, was nerve wracking. I knew the race was going to be fast, especially after being introduced to some of the whippet looking triathletes, and I said quick hello to last years winner Padraig Marrey (who I’d met at the Ballyhoora Beast).
SleepMonsters
