If you are a privileged reader of the blog you know what happened on Saturday. (If you are not a member you can join the group for free by clicking right here)
On Saturday I participated in my first triathlon . And for this premiere, the setting of the Château de Chantilly was breathtaking.
In this regard, I recommend this triathlon if you want to try your hand at the discipline. The organization is superb, the setting beautiful and there are distances for everyone.
You can make up your own mind with the video on my personal Facebook account: Margaux Blog (yes at the 1st minute it’s me haha)
Back to my first triathlon.
Before we start, a little reminder of the tests.
I participated in the discovery distance composed of 200m swimming / 10k cycling / 2k running
Between each event you have to go through a transition area to collect the material needed for the next event.
There are a few “rules” to follow in the transition area. For example:
- You cannot get on your bike
- You must have your helmet on (with the chinstrap attached) as soon as you come into contact with your bike
- You must respect your space
For this Chantilly triathlon, the exit from the water was via a wooden pontoon. Then there are about 200 meters separating the canal from the transition area.
So I ran to the transition area. As seen in the video. It allowed me to catch up a bit for the delay in the swimming event.
The swimming event is clearly my weak point. I couldn’t swim the front crawl barely 3 months ago. And my bike accident prevented me from training properly.
I started out knowing that I had a huge margin of improvement in this discipline. The Orca Open Water wetsuit helped me improve my buoyancy and protected me against the 17 ° C of the Chantilly Canal.
To try to grab minutes during transitions, I practiced removing the swimming suit during my triathlon preparation. I already had my shorts and my bra under the wetsuit.
So I put on a t-shirt, put on my helmet, my bib belt and my Nike Flyknits that slip on without a sock.
Once in the transition area
In the transition area, you need to equip as quickly as possible for the next event. When I left the transition area, I was 9 th girls out of the total number of participants. At the end of the cycling event, I was 14 th at the entry of the transition air.
After the cycling event, you return to the transition area to put down your cycling equipment and place your bib on the front ( during the cycling event your bib must be on the back ).
If you didn’t have an automatic pedal, you save some time on this transition.
During the running event, the magnificent surroundings of the hamlet of Chantilly castle were really motivating. You will run in the magnificent alleys, between the fountains: a real pleasure!
I didn’t have my Garmin watch so I ran into the thrills. During my preparation I had worked on the transition between cycling and running.
In triathlon, I have the impression that the cycling / running sequence breaks a lot of legs. It’s a very special feeling. I did not regret this specific training because I was able to catch up with a lot of competitors.
I particularly liked the good spirit during this last event.
Some competitors stopped and everyone was motivating them to leave.
What I remember from this first triathlon is a splendid setting in the gardens of the Château de Chantilly. A top organization. Great participants and a good spirit (I have never experienced such a good atmosphere between participants). Superb feelings of surpassing oneself. If you’ve seen the video on my personal Facebook, you’ve seen my face on arrival!
Thank you Castle Triathlon series for this great challenge!
Now the question is: what will be my next Triathlon?
I wanted to tell you that YOU are Generalissimo. Yes, yes, I assure you. Frankly, if I succeeded in my first triathlon, if I set myself full of sporting challenges (a little crazy) it’s because you motivate me.
And in return, with the articles, my advice, my best tips, my programs: I hope to do the same.