Novices put to the test

On a sunny Sunday morning at Sandwick, the Shetland Triathlon Club held its first ever novice “Try-a-Tri” event for people to come and sample triathlon racing in all its painful glory.

Thirteen people took part, 12 of whom had never done a triathlon before. The number was more than the club was anticipating and the organisers were delighted with the turnout and the enthusiasm displayed by all.

With the pool swim being organised by expected swim times and which stroke they were doing, it needed two heats to get them all racing, leading to staggered activity in the transition zone so no-one really knew who was leading the race at any one point. This meant that everyone had to just go their fastest to record a quick time to see where they placed at the end.

In the end, experienced swimmer and runner Kevin Gifford claimed the win in his first triathlon, followed closely by Bonar Barclay who displayed an amazing running speed off the bike. In third place was Alwyn Napier, giving a solid performance over all three disciplines.

A spokesman for the club said that they would like to thank the South Mainland Pool staff for their help and all the volunteers who, without them, the events would not be able to run.

Anyone interested in helping out at the next event, or indeed taking part, can contact the club at admin@shetlandtriathlonclub.co.uk or call 07917 106461.

The next event is taking place in Sandwick again on 14th June and consists of a 400m swim, a 12km cycle and a 3km run. People must be a member of the club to take part and memberships will be available on the day.