With Saturday being the warmest day of the year so far, the inaugural Ful-On Duathlon at the Chertsey MOD Test Track promised to be a good little event. The atmosphere was relaxed, Bill Black was on the commentary and there was a mini expo with an excellent coffee stand, some top-end BH bikes on display at the Prologue Bike stand and Physio4Life providing free post-race massages.

The race itself went very smoothly, despite a few issues with the racking and the wind blowing some of the barriers over. Thankfully we had plenty of marshals to compensate for this. The run course was tough and featured the 1 in 4 test gradient hill which those doing the standard distance had to run up 4 times. The bike course was fast and technical and appealed to the guys who like speed. Around 60% of the entrants were first timers and enjoyed the fact that the race had closed roads.

The men’s open race provided some fierce competition, and the 1 in 4 hill appeared to be the decider. Andy McFarlane swept to victory closely followed by Vince Kamp and Tristan Shipsides, all Ful-On Tri, securing the men’s team prize for Ful-On Tri with the addition of Stuart Anderson who finished fifth. The women’s race was equally as tight, with the win going to Julia Warren of Thames Turbo after Bethan Hopewell was DQ’ed for a cheeky bike change mid race. Victoria Collins of Serpentine was second just 10 seconds behind Julia, and Laura Fulton, Ful-On Tri, third. The men’s vets race had a clear winner in Gavin Francis of London Dynamo, with Phil Wege, Eton Tri Club, second and Colin Smith third. A few non-starters in the Ladies vets race meant only two raced, with Ann Marshall taking the win from Christine Glew. In the sprint event, Nick Tidball stormed to victory in the men’s race with Jo Perriam and Barbara Vintcent of Ful-On Tri sharing the honours in the women’s race. Great prizes were supplied by race sponsors Prologue Bikes, Vacherin and Swim for Tri. Every competitor felt like a winner, though, when they received a stuffed goodie bag on the finish line, making the effort up the test gradient hill all the more worthwhile. With offerings from Prologue Bikes, This Water, Gu, Jaffa Cakes, Kit-Kat, the real clincher was a CD of Stevie Wonder’s Numbers Ones! Not bad for a £20 entry fee.

Many thanks to all who attended, whether in racing, marshalling or spectating capacity and also to our sponsors for providing such generous prizes and goodie bags. We look forward to building and improving on the race for next year at this top venue. But how to follow up on that CD... perhaps Tina Turner’s Greatest Hits?!

PHOTOS:

Duathlon Photos 1 (Sandy)
Duathlon Photos 2 (Sandy)
more to follow...

RESULTS:

Results are available here. Actual measurements for the standard distance course were roughly: 4.6k/21k/4.5k and half that for the sprint distance. Please contact event@fulontri.com if you have any feedback or suggestions for improvements.

PRIZE LIST:

	Name	Club	Number	Time
1st Male Open	Andy McFarlane	Ful-On Tri Club	63	1:04:52
2nd Male Open	Vince Kamp	Ful-On Tri Club	51	1:05:33
3rd Male Open	Tristan Shipsides	Ful-On Tri Club	82	1:06:20
1st Male Vet	Gavin Francis	London Dynamo	134	1:10:59
2nd Male Vet	Phil Wege	Eton Tri Club	158	1:13:12
3rd Male Vet	Colin Smith		154	1:14:48
1st Female Open	Julia Warren	Thames Turbo	119	1:18:07
2nd Female Open	Victoria Collins	Serpentine	104	1:18:17
3rd Female Open	Laura Fulton	Ful-On Tri Club	107	1:24:24
1st Female Vet	Ann Marshall		168	1:29:10
2nd Female Vet	Christine Glew	Kingfisher	135	1:33:10
Men's Team prize:	Andy McFarlane	Ful-On Tri Club	63	1:04:52
	Vince Kamp	Ful-On Tri Club	51	1:05:33
	Tristan Shipsides	Ful-On Tri Club	82	1:06:20
	Stuart Anderson	Ful-On Tri Club	1	1:07:22
Male Sprint Winner	Nick Tidball		188	0:34:03
Female Sprint Winners	Jo Perriam & Barbara Vintcent	Ful-On Tri Club	196/198	0:46:37

 

Ful-On Duathlon : Sat 26th April 2008

The inaugural Ful-On Duathlon will take place on Saturday 26th April 2008 at Chertsey MOD Test Track in Surrey. The venue offers closed roads and challenging hills to tempt the racing snakes amongst you. There will be two distances on offer, with the race starting at 09:30hrs:

Standard distance: 5k run (2 laps) / 20k bike (4 laps) / 5k run (2 laps)
Sprint distance: 2.5k run (1 lap) / 10k bike (2 laps) / 2.5k run (1 lap)

Each run lap goes around one corner of the flat test track perimeter road before turning down the vehicle suspension courses and taking a right turn up to the challenging 1:4 incline of the vehicle/tank test gradients! The run then eases back down the hill towards the Race HQ and transition area. There will be a water station before transition, with water available on each lap of the run.

Each lap of the bike course takes you round the flat perimeter road of the test circuit before turning up the "Snake Course" which is a hilly/undulating route through the middle. A sharp left hand turn back onto the perimeter road takes you on an out-and-back stretch of the route with a dead turn at the end, before you head back towards transition and completion of the lap. The bike course is non-drafting and athletes who break the rules will be penalised.

The venue is ideal for novices and experienced competitors alike, with grass areas for easy spectating and ample parking. Refreshments such as teas, coffees, sandwiches and cakes are available from the "Vanilla Coffee" cafe stand at Race HQ. Bike spares can be purchased from the Prologue Bikes stand next to Registration. Toilet facilities are also located in this area, however there are no showers or changing facilities. There will be a First Aid ambulance service in attendance throughout the race.

All participants will receive a packed goodie bag, and there are superb prizes from Prologue Bikes for the first three men and women, and first three male and female vets (over 40), plus team prizes from Vacherin (men: 4 to score; women 3 to score) in the standard distance event, and prizes from Swim for Tri for the first male and female in the sprint distance event.

Date:	Saturday 26th April 2008
Registration opens:	08:00 hrs
Wave start times:	09:30 hrs; 10:00 hrs
Venue location:	Chertsey Test Track, Chobham Lane, Chertsey, Surrey KT16 0EE
Standard Distance:	5k run (2 laps) / 20k bike (4 laps) / 5k run (2 laps)
Sprint Distance:	2.5k run (1 lap) / 10k bike (2 laps) / 2.5k run (1 lap)
Cost:	£20 BTF members ; £22 non-BTF members
Race entry limit:	200
Online entry:	Online entry is now closed. We will accept entries on the day between 8am and 9am up to our race limit
Prizes:	Individual & team prizes
Prize giving:	12:30 hrs
Results service:	Posted at Registration on the day & website following the event - PROVISIONAL RESULTS ARE HERE: RaceResultsFinal.xls
Water station:	Next to transition at the completion of each run lap
Refreshments:	Available from the "Vanilla Coffee" cafe stand at Race HQ
First Aid:	Yes
Toilets:	Yes
Showers/changing facilities:	No
Race organiser:	Siobhan Brownlow: event@fulontri.com