I don’t usually ride in a group by it’s fun and makes time fly out on the road!
Last week we opened up a free invitation to triathlon club members to come and ride with me and some of the Tri Grand Prix team including race organiser Jose, on the course for the Kent race on May 30th. A visit to Kent in comes highly recommended with some fantastic countryside to explore and just a stones throw from London you have no limit to what you can get up to at night.
There was a really enthusiastic and mixed group including everyone from pro athlete Jonathan Hotchkiss to outright triathlon newcomers. We met up next to the swim start at Leybourne lake which was truly beautiful and made our way out on to the road.
The course itself is tough with some steep climbs on narrow roads and fast dual carriage way sections. Definitely favoring a strong cyclist the course should also help stop drafting in the age group race. If you can take a look at it before the big day go for it as there are some dangerous sections where riders need to be aware of the potential for on coming traffic and lack of potential for stopping! It took in many of the fantastic views and some of those picturesque villages you associate with the Kent area and is well worth a trip even if you don’t want to do the race.
Henry and James were training for Ironman 70.3 UK but decided to enter the Kent race after seeing the course.
If you are lacking the motivation to get in the big training you need to do for a long event, find a group to ride with and it will help the time pass quicker and be more fun.
IronMum Sarah Russel (pictured center) was keen to get going as she was doing our 56mile ride as part of her own 100 mile ride in preparation for the Challenge Copenhagen triathlon in August which I also hope to do. It can be grueling getting in those long sessions you need, in order to finish such a long event but by training in a group you can help time fly and keep your motivation up.
For group rides in your area try contacting your local cycling or triathlon clubs which can be found on the British triathlon web site or British cycling websites. I may be leading more ride on the 29th before the race so get in touch if there is any interest.
Challenge Barcelona, October 2009 run under contract by Evolution was hailed as a resounding success by pro and age group athletes. But if the Challenge family has an embarrassing relative that turned out to be a bad sort and they don’t like to talk about it’s Evolution.
Pro athletes have been enraged by months of being fobbed off with bogus excuses about anti-doping results and Evolution still refuses to pay prize money. Doubt also surrounds the hundreds of age group entries they accepted through their now illegal .com website.
Things started to go sour when Evolution stopped fulfilling their contract and complaints started coming in to the local council that they were not paying contractors. Challenge boss Felix Walchshofer headed to Spain where it was agreed with the Maresme County Government to end their contract and a new company was set up to organize the 2010 event and secure the future of Challenge Barcelona using the challenge-barcelona.es website.
Evolution, unfortunately has ignored this decision and illegally continued to run their challenge-barcelona.com web site. They have continued to accept age group entries for a race they are not organising.
For age group athletes I can offer some reassurance as my best sources in Spain and Germany promise that the race will go ahead. Even if you can not get a full refund the new challenge-barcelona.es company will still allow you to race without being out of pocket.
For pro athletes I can offer no such reassurance other than the weight of the law is on your side. The Evolution boss has a poor reputation in Spain and it seems unlikely that the pro athletes will be paid until they are forced to do so in court. This process could take months and many of the athletes are now cooperating to seek legal advice on getting the money sooner.
I sincerely hope Challenge can get through this difficult time as they will be left with a superb race with the full support of local authorities and a great race organiser. Just make sure if you are entering go through the www.challenge-barcelona.es site. I just hope the pro athletes aren’t left out in the cold.
It is now the view of many that Challenge should accept responsibility for athlete welfare not just in Germany but at all of their franchised races and pay defaulted prize money. The success of their new races has come from having a trusted Challenge brand and good prize money that attracts top pro athletes. If we are left to flounder when things go wrong however, athletes are left feeling let down and betrayed so what happens then?
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