2025 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
2025 saw another successful and fun season for Ocean Lake Triathlon.
We hosted 4 midweek evening Aquathlons, a summer Sprint Triathlon and were honoured to host a Triathlon England South East Series Junior Event for the third year running.
Quite a lot of our members raced in some of the local South East Series races. As a result we achieved second place in the Mixed Category and third in the Open.
As a club we enjoy racing at the South East Series events, as not only are they local, but there is a lot of camaraderie as we are racing alongside fellow Ocean Lake members.
We have some 'race veterans' like Trevor (pictured centre below) who raced at the Sevenoaks event 40 years after his first race there - and then we have some new members to the club just starting on their triathlon journey.
We always welcome new members - old or young - novice or experienced - everyone is welcome!
Newcomers to the sport have the opportunity to train alongside athletes representing their country at age group level - learning and sharing knowledge and experience.
Our coaches offer a range of training sessions throughout the year - and our members often organise social 'coffee stop mandatory' rides as well.
We also offer a structured 12-week training plan for members who aren't currently being coached or following a set plan. Whether you're targeting a Sprint, Standard, or 70.3 distance, this plan will help you train smart and peak for your 'A race'!
This year we wished Nicola and Trevor all the best as they migrated to Scotland. The amount of time, help and support they've both given to the club over the years is incredible! Not only long-time members, but also coaching other members, and Nicola now handing the Chairperson role over to Jackie to take forward.
 |  |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
The season begins...
The start of the year was, as usual, a bit wet and windy.
The first event any of us entered was the Penshurst village cross-country Canicross race. Randolph reports...
It was certainly an interesting race - I’ve never experienced anything quite like it.
On two occasions I had to carry Freckle through the flooded fields - at one point the water was almost up to my waist.
We started after the main (dogless) race so we had quite a few people to try and get past. Fortunately Freckle only tripped one person up - I apologised and swiftly moved on as they lay in the mud. 😬
We finished first and won a trophy.
Following on from Canicross, the mixture of events continues with the ever popular Cyclopark Duathlons organised by Bridge Triathlon.
Martin, Nicola, Trevor and Monika took part in the Spring Duathlon with great success. Monika took first place female in the sprint and Martin took second place male in the longer distance event.
Then, a month later, we returned for the Children's Duathlon where Imogen and Molly proudly represented Ocean Lake.
 |  |  |  |  |
|---|
A European Road Trip
At the end of April a group of seven Ocean Lake members travelled to Rumia in Poland for the European Duathlon Age Group Championships - Four of us racing and three supporting.
All of us racing in the Standard Distance of 10k run, 40k bike, 5k run - but within different age groups. For Martin and Randolph this was their first time qualifying, so this was a new experience.
Randolph reports the following....
This was the first event I've been to where there was an opening ceremony with each country carrying a flag into the venue. I'm not sure if no one else wanted to carry the flag, or maybe they saw how excited I was so just let me do it 😂
It was an honour and privilege to hold the flag and lead us into the venue.
I had travelled to Poland with a bit of trepidation as I really wasn't sure how my ankle would hold up. I hadn't run more than a 5k at any point in the past 10 weeks. However, I made it to the start line, and completed the race. In the end I think I probably had too much fun and could have tried harder 🤦♂️😂
However, it's not about the winning - it's all about the fun and nailing the celebration on the final sprint. 😉
Wearing the GB kit 🇬🇧, racing at a Euro championship, but also racing alongside my Ocean Lake friends made it the greatest race experience. And I could hear Charlotte screaming and cheering me on no matter where I was on the course! 😂
So much fun!!!! So, back to training to try and qualify for next year. 🏃♂️🚴♂️🏃♂️🤞🇬🇧
Whilst Randolph and Martin were first time qualifiers, Jordan was a seasoned age grouper - and he absolutely smashed it - pictured below on the podium picking up a bronze medal!
Well done Jordan. A truly phenomenal achievement.
South East Series Events
Every year we like to target the South East Series events. Members from all clubs in the region race against each other to secure points for the end of season trophies. With age taken into consideration for weighting the points, there's an opportunity for everyone to contribute to the overall score. As lots of our members enter these races it means there's plenty of camaraderie which makes it even more fun.
Up first was East Grinstead where Sophie, Claire, Simon, Trevor, Sean and Mark got us off to a great start. Mark and Claire finished first and second in their age groups respectively.
A week later it was the Sevenoaks event. A rather chilly morning, along with a hilly bike and a tough two-lapped run made for a challenging, but enjoyable, race. A large contingent of our members raced that day, with Jimmy taking second in his age group and Trevor competing 40 years after his first time there.
Next up Jimmy, Sean and Mark took a trip to Eastbourne for the standard distance.
Mark reports...
The swim went ahead this year luckily as it was calm (or so it looked) - turns out it was a tad choppy on the way out and the return leg.
Bike was just as lumpy as last year (700m apparently) with the bonus of them making it a full 40k as opposed to the 36k we did last year. There was a nice headwind down to Birling Gap but I keep telling myself it pushed me back up the hill 😫.
Run was warm, twice out and back for each loop and good to run with hundreds of others as a target. From a personal perspective ran far better than last year which was pleasing.
Another good event and well worth the 4.45am alarm clock this morning.
Finally we had the mixed relays at South Water - Always a fun event! This year we entered three teams with great success.
Agatha, Jordan and Alfred took the gold in 1st place.
Claire, Mark and Sean came 6th.
Charlotte, Simon and Randolph came 28th.
Ultimately this ensured we took the second place trophy in the mixed category at the end of the season.
Great achievement!
 |  |  |  |  |
|---|
A section just for Dylan...
This year, all of Dylan's races came in quick succession. Over a 2 month period he completed the Bustinskins WMD Weymouth 70.3, the Damn Buster, Outlaw Nottingham and the T100 in London - and he somehow managed to find time to write a race report for each one! His report from Outlaw Nottingham is below...
Started at 0600 in the water. It was like being in a washing machine — getting kicked and punched, etc., for the first 5 minutes before it eventually spaced out a bit. I'm adamant someone tried holding my head under the water at one point 👀
The swim took ages, and I got out at 1:26 before heading into T1, which was actually within my plan of 1:30 so happy days although it would be nice if I could swim better. The lake had reeds in parts, which felt mad in the hands, and I got a face full of lake weed a few times, which clung to my face. 😂
Out onto the bike, on my new bike, which I had only ridden for half an hour on Friday just gone, but we were about to get very acquainted. When I tried this last year, I overbiked massively and paid dearly on the run, which basically became a walk for me. So this year, I was determined to play it smart.
I purposely rode a slower bike split of 6 hours this time. At one point, the heavens opened and I got drenched.
It was at this moment that my back left Profile Design bottle cage decided to vibrate itself off the bike and across the road on a major roundabout. Thankfully, because it was Sunday morning, it was pretty dead, so I managed to salvage it and put it back on with my Allen keys. It cost me about 5 minutes, though.
Otherwise, the bike was uneventful. I stuck to the numbers I had planned and just went with it. Aid stations were handing out all sorts but I just took a bottle of High5 carb drink off them and would drink one bottle per hour, I had a gel every 20 miles or so just to top up.
Back into T2, I took some extra time to Vaseline my feet, which I’ve found is my new trick for preventing all blisters.
Out onto the run, I was running at 9:15–9:30 min/mile, and did this for the first hour. Then I thought, "Maybe I’ll just push on a little bit." The bloke I was with started going backwards when I did, but we have to race our own race, so I went on my own for the remaining 3 hours. It was a good call, as I would later lap him (sorry Bruce).
My rule was I could walk every aid station, but I couldn’t be longer than 30 seconds at any of them. As last year, once I gave into the safe haven of the aid station and stood around, everything went downhill from there.
So this year, I had to firmly stick to all my plans if I wanted to achieve my goal of sub-12.
And… I did!
11:43:55 was my time when I crossed the line.
Happy days. Already planning on how I can knock time off at my next full distance.
More Race Reports...
In June Jack, Martin and Chris raced the Cotswolds 113. Jack had a very successful race and learnt a lot, as indicated in his race report...
Early start, up at 4:30. Porridge and coffee breakfast and then 10 minute drive to the event.
Very nervous ahead of the start but that went away as soon as I got in the water.
Swim felt strong, although the time didn’t reflect that at 42 minutes. The lake was crystal clear and the course was setup well.
T1 I intentionally took my time, which felt like the right decision as there was no panic and all of my bike gear went on easy.
My intention for the bike was to try and hit 30km/hr avg on what is a flat course.
After 20k(ish) I was hitting 33/34 without giving it too much beans, so decided to settle in and eventually ended up at 32 which I was over the moon with. Hit a 70.3 bike PB and still had plenty in the tank for the run….
T2 again was conservative, although I was conscious that I was potentially on for a good time so wasn’t as chilled as T1.
I set off on the run which, at this distance, is usually my arch nemesis due to cramp. I’ve never done a 70.3 run without curling up with horrendous cramps. This run felt different….
I settled in to a good pace (for me) and had my eyes on 5km as my first marker. I cruised through 5k and felt really good. For the first time I didn’t have any inclination that cramp was on its way.
I really liked the run setup of three 7km loops. By the time I got to halfway I was holding my pace with relative ease. The first time I started to feel the fatigue was at about 16/17km, had to dig in here, had some cola and some jelly babies at the aid station which seemed to give me a new lease of life (may have been placebo) and then set about making sure I got the run under 2 hours.
I made a concerted effort in the lead up to this event to drink a lot more and include Utah sea minerals in my drinks, I’ll never know, but I do think that the Utah sea minerals were the key to the lack of cramp.
The finish chute felt incredible with lots of supporters lining the course. I was met at the finish line by Steve Hunter with a grin on his face like a Cheshire Cat and I know I’d done a good time (for me).
Thank you Steve for the support, it was great to have you on course and the pearls of wisdom in the lead up.
I’d highly recommend Cotswold113, magnificent event.
I shall no longer be known as Crampapotumus!
Next up we hear from Nicola where she took part in the Lakesman with Trevor...
Trevor and I took part in The Lakesman Triathlon in Keswick. This was an English and British championship race.
This is a really well organised and friendly race with great support from the marshals and volunteers and a beautiful setting.
We have been training for this since January and hadn’t fully anticipated that we would be training while simultaneously packing up our home of 27 years to move to Scotland. It was a tough day but we were both really happy to have Izzy and her friends to support us on the run and I’m sure I ran faster as I didn’t want to keep them waiting too long.
We were delighted to receive medals too!
Trevor has the over 65s English Bronze medal and I have the over 60s English Silver and British Bronze medal. Completely unexpected but made the hard training feel worth it.
I would recommend the event with the bonus of Mick Barlow being a friendly face and next year we should be there supporting too.
On the hunt for a World Age Group qualification, Agatha raced the Standard Triathlon at Cardiff...
Completed my first standard distance, a shock to the system after sprint distances. Happy with my swim time (23 mins)considering the choppy conditions. Led the swim with a girl tickling my feet and a drone above.
After a quick transition I went out on my bike, led with a lead camera man for a couple of laps and then swallowed up by some very quick cyclists but managed to get 1:15 hr on a windy and bumpy course.
After a fuel stop in transition, I managed a consistent run of 42 minutes. Happy with my result (2:23 hrs), managed 15th overall and 2nd in my age group qualifying me for Worlds next year. 😊
On the same day Mark had a similarly fantastic result at the local Bridge Triathlon...
This weekend I took a trip to Dartford to do Bridge Tri (along with Justin and Jack), not the most scenic of routes but a good local event on a closed road bike circuit.
There were two sprint waves and a non wetsuit swim with water apparently around 23/24 degrees. Swim went well and I found myself first out the water which was a first although I took someone with me the whole way on my feet (I should have let him past to share the workload but I was enjoying following the kayak for the first time ever), the swim exit did involve swimming through about 30m of weed which was less pleasant.
The three lap bike course with multiple dead turns went well, there was a strong head wind one way but plenty of people on the bike course with the standard having started earlier, so people of all speeds to target and chase. The person on my feet in the swim really highlighted my cycling weakness as he disappeared shortly after T1.
Finally the run was uneventful, one loop around the houses (literally) although it was getting toasty even at 09.00 so was a warm one.
Someone in wave 2 beat me as well but I was pleased with 3rd place overall having had a DNF at this race in the past.
Back at the Cotswolds again, but this time the Cotswolds Classic with Jason, Stuart and Sophie. We hear from Sophie...
We travelled up to the 113 Cotswold classic event.
Little lay in until 0500, quick breakfast and over to rack the bike and set up in transition.
It was a rolling start which I kinda like over the mass starts - I entered the water at 0640 in wave 2. The swim felt good as I had prepared myself Wednesday with doing a non-wetsuit swim at the OLT Aquathlon. Swim not the best but was happy with 46.44.
T1 - I took my time here to make sure I had everything on and I was comfortable to go.
The bike 1st lap went well, however felt it on the second. 3hr 11min.
T2 - just a quick change of footwear and a cap, not forgetting the extra gels.
The run felt good, 3 laps around 2 lakes although the long straight on the road was hard in the pounding sun! Had told myself that I wasn’t going to look at the overall time until I had finished the second lap as I would have liked a sub-6 hr. After the 2nd lap I checked my timings and it was possible if I just lifted my legs a little more, the pressure was on!
On the last stretch I was telling myself come on you can make this….
And over the line 5.58.58!
On the same day Chris was taking part in the 'Race to the Stones' Ultra..
Yesterday I competed in Race To The Stones Ultra marathon 100k.
In hindsight we booked this race a little (very) impulsively, giving us only 14 weeks to train for it. But hey, we have a good running base right? It'll be fine 😳
With a My Pro Coach 12 week plan I entered the world of training for a seriously long running only event for the first time since taking up triathlon six years ago, other than the odd half marathon peppered between 70.3's so it took a shift in mindset, and the pleasure of buying a whole new set of kit in the shape of an ultravest and other bits.
The training went well, four runs a week with something longer on the weekend, only missing a few because of holidays and illness. Having said that it never felt enough for 100k!
I had the nutrition nailed and second nature with an SIS Beta fuel gel and maltloaf per hour, about 75g of carbs with plain water and electrolytes.
On race day the hottest place in the country was ten miles north of the Ridgeway, a blistering 34 degrees. Extra water stations were put out between pitstops.
We started at 8:10 and started feeling great. First 20k were relatively flat and under cover and stuck to target pace. We hit the hills soon after and the running poles came out. Stuck to nutrition plan and had a litre ish of water/electrolytes per hour.
After pitstop 3, at around 45k the bottom fell out of the world. Under a cloudless sky with no cover and a relentless gradual climb that wasn't quite steep enough for the poles I hit the wall. Running was no longer an option, my HR didn't go below 150 when walking, and it felt like being in a furnace.
I made the call, after flip flopping for half an hour to call it at base camp, 50k.
Tough decision, but the right one. Still did my longest ever run and the event/location were first class. I loved it.
Finishing time 7:40, and coming back for more next year...
Every September we turn up in force at Hever for our local event in the Castle Race Series. This year was no different. Some great success as well, with Mark winning the Sprint race on the Saturday! Then, on the Sunday, Alex took on the infamous Gauntlet...
On Sunday 3 others and I took on the gauntlet as our first triathlon. And it was a humbling experience to say the least.
It was a well organised event and the support was brilliant.
Unfortunately pulled my back getting the bike out the van on arrival so it set the tone for the day.
The swim was painful and took a lot longer than I was hoping. And a tad cold 😂
The bike course was gruelling with all the elevation.
And the run was purely survival at the end.
Luckily I didn't get caught by the cut-off time and made it to the end.
I have learned a lot and will be training hard for next year's events.
Thanks to Steve and everyone at OLT for helping with everything since I decided to pop up 6 months ago and looking forward to more events and training with the group.
Well done Alex! I think you chose one of the hardest races as your first triathlon!
 |  |  |  |  |  |
|---|
Jason at Ironman Tallinn
Into August and Jason is racing at Ironman Tallinn. The race report needs no introduction...
This race was years in the making. I first entered Ironman Tallinn back in 2022 with Kevin, at what was probably the fittest point of my life after training harder than ever before. Unfortunately, I snapped my ACL in my left knee just before the race and had to defer.
In 2023, I built myself back up and started training again with determination. But in April that year, I was struck down with sepsis and came frighteningly close to losing my life. Once again, the race had to be postponed. Recovery was long and tough, both physically and mentally, but I always held on to the goal of one day making it to the start line.
On the eve of the race, Ironman announced that due to the cold water temperature, the start would be delayed to 9:30am. That meant one certainty: I would be finishing in the dark. A daunting thought, but also part of the challenge.
I was the only member of OLT competing in Tallinn, but thanks to a WhatsApp group I’d joined, I had connected with others racing. Having a few friendly faces around helped enormously.
Standing in the swim start pen, the atmosphere was electric. Music was pumping, and we linked shoulders during the motivational speech. I couldn’t stop thinking about the hundreds of hours of training we had all put in just to reach this point.
Every four seconds another four athletes entered the water, and then it was my turn.
The water was cold, but I had expected that. I deliberately didn’t push too hard on the swim – it was going to be a long day, and pacing was key.
Out of the swim and into T1, I changed into dry and comfortable bike gear, ready for the 180km ride ahead.
The course turned out to be hillier than I’d anticipated, but I managed to hold an average of around 27kph.
My nutrition plan worked perfectly, even as the rain poured for about three hours and strong winds battered the open stretches.
Back into T2, I switched into my tri suit for the marathon. My legs actually felt strong coming off the bike, and I set my mindset straight away: four loops of 10km.
The first two laps went well, but by the final one, my body was definitely feeling the strain. Still, my mood stayed good, and I found motivation in others around me – fellow athletes also broken but pushing forward. We encouraged each other step by step.
As the night wore on, it got bitterly cold. At one aid station, they were handing out survival blankets, but running in it felt like being wrapped in a crisp packet, so I quickly discarded it.
Finally, the red carpet came into view. I rang the bell proudly as a first-timer and somehow found an extra surge in my legs for a sprint finish. After starting on Saturday morning, I crossed the finish line in the early hours of Sunday – 15 hours and 14 minutes after I began.
Amazing!
It will come as no surprise that Jason received the 'Adversity' award at our annual club prize giving ceremony as well as being voted 'Athlete of the Year' by the club members. Seen being presented with his trophy by Jackie below...
More European Success
In August Alfred, Agatha and Andy took part in the European Sprint Triathlon Age Group Championships in Istanbul with some fantastic results.
Alfred reports back...
A bit of an interesting race - with a fairly decent swim but still had work to do.
Managed to get onto the bike (in the process my seat ended up bending forwards) and dropped people on the hills. Ended up with a fast bike split - caught up most of those in front of me as I ended up in a quick group of about 4 of us, who caught up groups in front and eventually passed onto the next.
I didn’t realise however that my bike shoes had split open the skin on my foot so when I put my run shoes on I had a sharp pain in my foot, but the adrenaline meant it wasn’t an issue until after the race anyway.
The run was ok, caught up about 18 people overall and several in U20. Still wasn’t really as fast as I wanted though. Finished 13th overall including Asian and European athletes (12th in Europe). In U20’s I was 4th, 3 seconds behind 3rd and 5 seconds behind 2nd so overall a bit gutted, but eh, it’s all learning and improving and should PQ for next year.
Very hot race!
1st out the swim, missed my spot in transition (everyone seems to have the same trainers), had to fight to stay with the lead bike pack.
Caught up and stayed up. Riding over the bridge - Asia to Europe and back - turned out to be 25k.
Water stations on the run were to cool down not hydrate.
Held my spot to finish 5th. (3rd GB). Happy with that.
Great venue, but not very spectator friendly, lots of boat trips to get the bike over to set up.
Now time to relax and enjoy 🍺🍹
And, from Agatha...
 |  |  |  |  |  |
|---|
Ironman Kalmar
Stuart and Martin's big 'A' race this year was Ironman Kalmar in August. Huge success for both of them! Stuart starts us off...
I travelled out to Kalmar a few days before the race with the family. One of the first things I did was a familiarisation swim. To my shock, after just a few hundred metres I was surrounded by jellyfish. Sod this, I thought, and swam back. A quick Google confirmed the swim course was full of jellyfish. It bothered me, but I knew the best thing to do was face the fear head on. The next day I went to recce the last stretch of the swim course and, yes, it was full of the bloody things. But after five minutes I became more used to them 🎐
Kalmar is an amazing setting for an Ironman, and the town comes out in full support of the event. Martin found a great company called Velo Yellow who collected our bikes and took them back for us after the race. This turned out to be a godsend and made life really easy.
Race day... We travelled in at 4:30am and parked right next to the swim start. A quick fiddle in transition and before long we headed to the waterfront to pop on the wetsuit and visit the loos. I was nice and relaxed before the start enjoying the usual Ironman playlist. I wasn’t expecting a lot from the swim given my training, so I didn’t have a time in mind.
I’d forgotten what Ironman swims are like, brutal. Before long, the watch was started and we were in.
It had been years since I’d done a sea swim in a race. Immediately I was stuck behind swimmers who had seeded themselves poorly, and that set the tone. I kept up with those I’d gone in with, but we were continuously met with bodies to navigate around.
Kalmar is a technical swim with lots of turns. At the furthest point the water got choppy, and at around 2.5 km we had a bit of a current pulling us off course. Before long, I was back at the pontoon with a 1h13 swim. Happy with that. Wetsuit zip undone, swim hat and goggles in the sleeve, and on to the blue bag for a quick turnaround. Four minutes in transition and then out on the bike.
The crowds were loud around the mount line. We headed over the 7 km bridge to the island of Öland, where we’d been staying. The roads were good. I knew I had the wind behind me and, judging from the number of old wooden windmills on the island, I knew that wind would be in front of me at some point. Sure enough, coming back up the other side of the island we faced a slight incline that lasted for what felt like 10 km into a headwind. It wasn’t strong, but enough to make life hard.
For nutrition, last year in Roth I used a carb mix (32GI Race Pro and gels) which worked, but I felt hungry at the end of the run and cramped. For Kalmar, I switched back to Precision Hydration using the 1000 electrolyte (also on the course), which meant I didn’t need to carry spares. For middle and Long Distance, you're not just fuelling the ride, you are fuelling the run.
Back into town with the crowd before heading out again for the last 50 km loop. Then into transition — 5h35 for the bike, which measured 3 km longer than Roth. I ran into T2 with my legs still feeling good.
What a run course. The first 4 km take you through the town. The streets are packed, and with the crowd you don’t really think about distance. The rest of the course is also lined with support — locals in their gardens with sound systems, hoses to cool you down, cheers all the way. Easily the best run course I’ve done.
My coach was there with his wife, racing in the pro field. The day before he’d told me: “no 4s on the run”. So of course, my first kilometre came in at 4:30. Whoops. Legs are working too well. I slowed down and settled into my strategy: run 2 km, walk the aid station, repeat.
It’s a three-lap course. I took water and electrolytes at alternate stations. On the last lap I switched to caffeine (Coke) to see me through. I took 3 gels throughout the marathon each about 45 mins apart, which did the job.
The first two laps felt good. I knew the wheels would come off, and when they do for me, it’s usually spectacular. This time it was on the third lap, around 36 km. Each time you start running again from a walk it gets harder, and this was the moment it really hurt. But I pushed through and told myself, one more parkrun to go.
Back into town, on to the red carpet. I saw the family and my coach. That sense of pride and joy and all the hard work has been executed. 3h41 for the run and a total time of 10h42, ironically same time as last year, however a slightly longer course, so probably a 10 mins or so improvement on 2024.
I was proud to have got this one done, especially given the challenges outside of training this year. I was also proud to see Martin complete his race, brilliant performance and great to see what it means to him 💪. It was also great to settle into a few beers after, especially on the Sunday. Sweden is an amazing place, and I like to think I’ll be back, either to visit, or maybe to race again.
The only thing left to do is decide where I'm going in 2026 😉
And a similar positive experience from Martin...
After waking up at 3:30 and meeting Stuart an hour later, we drove the 30 minutes into Kalmar and parked up. The music was playing and I tried to just process what the day ahead was going to look like. At 7:10, we fist bumped for the last time and the race began.
The water was really warm and the harbour was still, but when we broke the breakwater, there was a definite chop to contend with. Oh, there were also some pretty big jelly fish that were a little like touching a soggy bag. I quickly got into my rhythm and all race day nerves vanished. It is a technical course with lots of turns but this really helped speed up the passing of the course. I encountered no issues and found myself going past lots of swimmers finally completing in 1:13:30, a new PB!
I took my time in T1 but not excessively. It was enough time to eat a banana, sort out the kit, have a loo break and head towards the exit. The biggest part of the day was about to begin.
Overall, the bike course is pretty flat with a great road surface. I would be lying if I said I saw more than 3 potholes across the 180km. For the first 45+km, I had the wind on my back and was cruising at well over 33kph.
At the turn, the wind hit along with the poorest road surface of the entire day and a very slight gradient. My speed dropped so I pushed more watts. I quickly noticed however, the extra effort was not giving out a great deal more speed so just managed this part of the ride knowing there were other opportunities for speed along the course.
I completed the bike in 6:11, pretty much on my target.
T2 passed in a flash and I was out onto the run and then it struck me, my legs felt fresh and I could run! All went well for the first half, walking the aid stations and managing the pace. I went a little early on the nutrition though and I think overloaded the stomach. I had to stop for the loo, longer than I wanted and was slightly sick on two occasions. I held it together though finishing in 4:11.
I hadn't been keeping track of my time. I had been told to remove the stress of clock watching so when I hit the red carpet, I had no idea I was going to finish under 12 hours. I rang the first time finishers bell, sprinted up the carpet and completed in 11:49:45. I felt really emotional and proud of what I had achieved.
This has capped off an incredible year.
Kevin's Parkrun Century
Last year Kevin completed the Great Patagonia Run.
An incredible adventure which included logistical complications of ferry delays, border crossing problems and the threat of jail for flying a drone! Despite these woes Kevin and his teammates completed...
8 days of running, hiking and walking over 200kms
33hrs 37 mins of exercise
4018m of elevation
15,500 calories burned
Quite an experience!
Unfortunately, Kevin suffered an injury at the start of this year - which has meant a long recovery period. The eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed him on crutches in some of the above photos whilst supporting his fellow Ocean Lake teammates! Throughout the year Kevin has been cheering on everyone else, plus still coaching the Wednesday night swim sessions.
It was therefore great for some of us to join Kevin for his (delayed by injury) 100th Parkrun at Kingdom in December - and then join him for breakfast afterwards.
It's good to see you running again Kevin and on the road to racing again.
Here's to 2026 🍻
Our Events
A shout out to everyone who entered any of our Aquathlons or our Sprint Tri this year.
With near perfect conditions, 107 competitors took part in the Sprint Tri, Aquabike and Aquathlon at Leybourne Lakes Country Park.
The water was calm, the roads were flat and the run route provided wonderful views of the lake.
There were so many strong performances throughout but what made the day so special was the enthusiasm and camaraderie between all the athletes.
Thank you to the many tri clubs, near and far, that took part, the individuals who were here for the first time and the supporters for cheering throughout.
A big thanks to Leybourne Lake Watersports Centre for hosting the event, the water support crew, NE Timing and last but not least, the marshals, who worked tirelessly to make sure the day went smoothly.
Athlete feedback...
"...For someone who has been doing triathlons since the 1980's, Ocean Lake Tri had all the hallmarks of triathlons as I remember from the early years - succinct, timely and relevant pre-race information without a need to contact race organisers.
So well organised, calm atmosphere, friendly and helpful volunteers (especially the marshals out on the roads), the checking-in on anxious swimmers before the swim, a whistle to start instead of a loud hooter, adequate safety cover on the water was reassuring, and the atmosphere pre and post race had the lovely community, supportive feeling which seems to have been lost at big corporate run Tri events..."
It was an honour to once again host the BTF South East Series Junior Aquathlon.
A wonderful weekend with glorious sunshine at Leybourne Lakes.
Over 100 young triathletes took part in our swim and run event across age groups TS1, TS2, TS3 and Youth/Junior over various distances.
There were strong performances throughout and lots of smiles when they crossed the finish line. Well done everyone!
Thank you to all the clubs, supporters and volunteers who were there and made the day successful.
Great help and support from Highview Glazing & Construction Ltd - thanks - you made the day easier 🙏
We have great feedback from our BTF Technical Officials who commented on the quality of communication with our waterside support crew and the event. Big shout out to our water safety team Leybourne Lake Watersports Centre monitoring and helping the youngsters navigate the course safely.
And finally a special mention to Laura - our Welfare Officer. Laura is stepping down from her role at the end of next season, so we'd like to thank Laura for all the time and effort she has put into the club, especially with the Junior Aquathlons. The level of success, safety and positive feedback of this event is a testament to her effort and dedication!
More Achievements
Some of our other achievements this year...
-
Jenna Whitecross completing her first triathlon - The Maldon standard in 2hrs 55mins.
-
John Simpson competing in the European Duathlon Middle Distance Championship.
-
David Taft competing in the European Aquabike Middle Distance Championship.
-
Mick Barlow has now qualified as an RTO official to do open water events.
-
Jordan Lockett wins the Maidstone Harriers Turkey Run.
-
Randolph Burt and John Simpson completed the Great British Escapade off-road bikepacking event.
-
Martin, Jimmy, Steve, Simon, Mark, Stuart, Mus and Leo with some inter-club rivalry at the Fast and Furious Team Relays
-
Graham Tucker and Chris Riding getting PBs at the Marden Half Marathon.
-
Simon Carlin and Ian Skelton getting PBs at the Marden 10k
-
Trevor + Nicola Wignall participating in the Loch Ken 2km swim - 14°C🥶
