SLSC Aquathlon Series 2

Organised by the South London Swimming Club and held at the Tooting Bec Lido, this is a four-series swim and run event. In Malaysia, we call it a Biathlon Race. Here it's Aquathlon. Oh well...here are the numbers....

1000m Swim time : 20mins 37 secs
8km run time : 36mins 02sec

It is the most rubbish 1000m swim time I've ever achieved in a race. It's so slow that Pat's kids would have reached puberty by the time I finish.

The Fear

The water temperature was 16 deg C. Anyone who's not Malaysian, who doesn't wear Arena or not lacking in common sense would probably come in a wetsuit! But not me. I was only in a tri-suit. Fortunately I didn't look too awkward. A few others were just down to basics - just swimming trunks!

The Challenger

I was shivering. But shivering before the race started was a bad sign. When I started changing into my swimming attire, the body reacted like someone who's trying to drive a car in 5th gear from rest.

The whole incident altered the way I see rubber now!

90 of us were divided into two starting times. They put me with the faster swimmers in the second wave. The pool was 100 yards in length, one of the longest and rarest in the UK. So we just needed to swim 11 laps to complete the swimming event.

Once in the water, it wasn't too bad. Just needed to keep moving. That's when the body felt less cold. The people in wetsuits were like seals. Their added buoyancy provided the lift to swim pass me without an effort! I was left competing speedboats with two oars!

When I started overtaking a few swimmers in wetsuit, I gained confidence. But I was still far away from the rest.

The marshals were very observant. With so many swimmers to track, they were able to keep time of my laps. On the 11th lap, they shouted for me to get out of the pool and run!

Wearing a tri-suit has its advantage during transition. People in wetsuit may need an extra minute or two to peel off the suit.

I was reeling while wiping myself dry and picking my pair of shoes. I couldn't balance at all. I looked drunk to the spectators. Of course, that translated to a funny moment to the crowd and me. I wished I could smile back but my mouth was still shivering.

I didn't bother with the socks so I just slipped on the shoes, picked up my bib and shot off. The treads were heavy and confined. The body was still recuperating from the cold.

After 6 minutes, the legs started communicating. My speed picked up and some participants were within sight. After a few push, I was able to overtake a few more runners. Of course I was also overtaken by one really fast runner who made up for lost time during transition!

The run was three loops around Tooting Bec Common.

When I finished the third loop, I returned to the pool where the finishing area was. I checked my time; 56mins 39 secs in total.

The Finisher

For the hard work and £14, this is what I got...

The Reward