03.07.11: The Second Roseland Triathlon was considered a complete success yesterday by its participants, organisers and onlookers alike. The race, which consisted of an open water swim from Tatum’s beach, Portscatho, to Porthcurnick beach, followed by a cycle rise to St. Anthony’s headland and into St. Mawes and ending with a run from St. Anthony lighthouse back into Portscatho, had 133 participants, 1/3 more than last year’s 100. People came from all over the UK to participate and everyone seemed impressed with the way the event had been planned and executed.
Organiser, Anne Nichols told Roseland Online, “It was another fantastic event and we have been overwhelmed with the good wishes from everyone. It went much smoother this year and we hope to build upon that next year; maybe even increasing the number to around 200 entrants.”
The maximum this year was around 150 but they had enquiries for well over that number. In fact one of the last entrants rang up on Friday evening. He wanted to come down with his new child and wife, so Barney Nichols found a last minute placing for him due to someone dropping out. That person turned out to be the overall winner; James Whetman.
James was the overall winner in the senior category. Jason Pascoe was the first ‘Vet’ across the line and in overall fourth place, and in the winning relay team, ‘Morse and the Beast’ took the first title at overall 25th place. Their times were 01:25:34, 01:30:44 and 01:44:59 respectively. Anne Maskell was the first female to hit the tape at 01:39:57 and was overall 14th place.
Despite the obvious competiveness of the participants, tales of camaraderie abounded. One Marshall told Roseland Online, “Whilst waiting for the swimmers to come across to pick up their bikes, someone heard the sound of a tyre deflating. Sure enough, some poor competitor’s front wheel had burst. When he eventually got the bike out of the paddock ready for his long cycle, he looked down to find his race was at an end; that is until a friendly cyclist, who happened to be watching, simply whipped off the front wheel of his own bike and gave it to him so he could complete the course.”
For next year, the organisers want to run an Olympic length race. “This won’t stop those who would rather keep the traditional length,” Anne Nichols reassured us, “but we would like to extend the overall track next year in tribute to the 2012 Olympics. Barney has the track idea in his head and once the dust on this year’s event settles, he’ll be on to planning next year’s ‘Sprint Distance’.”
Unlike last year, the Roseland Triathlon has now been accepted by the BTF (British Triathlon Federation) the national governing body for the sport, which has given it much more kudos within the sporting world. This will only prove a bonus for next year’s events and a welcome boost to local trade as many village clubs and pubs have benefitted greatly from this pre-summer event.
More of Mary Alice Pollard’s photos from the day’s events can be seen on our Facebook page.