On a cloudy day took part in my first ever duathlon after a few months of preparing for the above challenging event (5km run, 35km Cycle. 5km run) with minimum running & road cycle training, so a real challenge.
Race started at 13.00 with a 5Km run round the town of Grasse which is the perfume capital town inland from Cannes . The run was flat for about 2,5km and then turned hilly for the other 2.5km. Arrived in transition one feeling OK but took some time preparing for the hilly road bike ride up to the panoramic village Cabris which is nestled on a hill at around 500m (hence panoramic). It was a slow climb up from Grasse to this village via another village called Speracedes.. After Cabris there was a fast steep downhill stretch into Grasse for a second lap. On the downhill section it started raining so had to take it easy on the slippery wet and oily road. Arrived in Grasse for a second lap which was quite a challenges as not done much hill endurance training with my Giant road bike on hilly rides. The second lap up to Grasse was quite energy sapping and the downhill section was quite difficult as the rain had become quite heavy and aquaplaning was an issue and a slow descent was important to avoid an accident. Arrived at transition two and this was reasonably quick turnaround for me. The run on the same course as outlined above was slow especially on the hilly section going up to the finish. Arrived at the finish very tired but did a brief sprint which was initiated by the support team as well as the applause of the organisers, participants and spectators and this was followed by a brief interview by the compare. At the prize giving, I was called forward to receive a consolation prize and a photo on the podium with a bouquet of flowers ( My wife Jacqueline was delighted with these) – See below ……
My results were as follows: Total time 2:59:51, First 5km run 29.43, Transition 1 : 2.01, 35Km Bike:1.55.57, Transition 2: 1,51, Second 5Km Run: 30,22. 197th overall and 5th in my age group.
Great start to the season and need to do some more endurance work in hilly cycling and running to increase my fitness and be more competitive for such an event. Next event coming up is the Figa Bike a 20 Km hilly MTB ride with friends.
CAMTRIER 
