Wadenhoe Race 4
Wadenhoe Race 4
Storms all round for final Race.
Well it was a very wet and blustery finish to the Wadenhoe 09/10 series, with a
deep low blowing up stormy conditions from the Bay of Biscay. Unfortunatley all
the rain added to the already swollen River Nene, and the river was closed to
navigation, leading to us having to cancel the Quadrathlon.
Not to be perturbed the die hard regulars and a few mad virgins braved the
elements to start the Duathlon. Weren’t they in for a treat? The stream flowing
through the top field was the highest I have ever seen it [in fact it had spread its
banks and made a very large puddle]. From the word go the competitors slipped
and slid their way around the first two run laps. New boy, Edward Sumpter,
stretched his long legs and took an early lead.
Down at the swamp the river had burst it banks and for safety reasons we had to
take out the first ½ of the infamous swamp – but don’t worry, we made up for it
on the second half with plenty of deep, dark, scary puddles and plenty of that
fabulous glutinous mud [that Wadenhoe is so famous for]. In fact before the race
we had to send one of the marshals out in waders to mark the river bank. Even
as the competitors completed the first lap it was clear that the conditions were
taking its toll, with varied expressions of pain and plenty of dollops of mud
thrown in for good measure [I don’t think anyone would be starring in a Persil
advert today].
Ed was the first person back into transition hotly pursued by Troy Garrity. The
swollen stream soon proved to be a problem, almost stopping some athletes dead
in their tracks by the depth and volume of the cold stuff. In fact on the new bike
course you have to cross the stream four times. First and second was not the only
hotly contested position, as further down the course their was a personal battle
developing between that old Wadenhoe stalwart, Willie Carr, and his 12 year old
son, Barney [to protect the elderly it would not be fair to comment on who was
doing better]. The wet conditions certainly made the going soft to very soft to
down-right saturated, making the bike course very slippery indeed, with a lot of
added resistance. So hard in fact, two people broke their bike chains trying to
put the power down.
Going into the final two run laps the top 2 positions had not changed with Ed
still out in front and Troy coming a close second, a situation that was unchanged
to the end of the race [not through lack of trying but Troy just could not catch
Ed]. The bike course proved to be problematical for Patrick who suffered from a
puncture. I must mention the few new competitors who were taking part for the
first time; I think it was baptism of fire [being the hardest conditions that we
have had for a long time].
On the finish line the first lady home was Gaye Taylor [in a time of 01:37:48].
The First man was Edward Sumpter, in a time of 01:09:12 and second was Troy
Garrity in 01:10:36. Not to be out done Sam Blakeman [the young local lad] put
in a time of 01:25:03.
The Series: Overall
By the end of the Wadenhoe 09/10 series we had run four Duathlons, but
unfortunately only two Quadrathlons [meaning very few people qualified for the
series].
In the Quad the overall winner was Colin Peck with a combined time of 3:03:59,
with second place going to John Fryer in a time of 3:12:08 and the first lady
going to Lucy Fern in a time of 4:45:28. Richard Stagg picked up MV50 and
MV40 went to Willie Carr
In the Duathlon the series winner was Troy Garrity with the lowest combined
time of 2:07:04 and second place going to Patrick Schalbetter in a time of
2:14:00.
Roz Giles was the first lady in a time of 2:59:38 [Roz’ attempt to gain a trophy in
both events was thwarted with the cancelation of the last race]. A well deserved
U23 male went to Edward Sumpter in 2:22:07.
A full listing of the overall race results and split times can be found by logging
onto our website: www.quadracracing.co.uk.
I would like to thank all the competitors who have taken part during the series.
Special thanks must be said to all the helpers and marshals who have given up
their valuable time to put on the races in cold wintery conditions. Without their
dedication the series would not be possible.
Looking forward to the summer, we hope that you will come and join us for our
Off Road Triathlon & Quadrathlon on 04.07.10, to be held at Box End Water Ski
Park [entry forms available on our website].
