My COVID Diaries: back in the saddle

It is safe to say that COVID‑19 has decimated our social lives. One of the big impacts for us has been losing the ability to exercise in groups – whether it is sessions with the triathlon club or running our local Parkrun each week.

Exercise has always boosted my mood, but doing it with others is even better.

With the strains of practice during lockdown, this is something I have missed hugely.

Like everyone else, nearly everything we planned this summer – from weddings to races – was cancelled, or postponed then cancelled.

Alongside getting married, I had previously decided that 2020 was going to be my “Year of the Triathlon”. Obviously 2020 turned out pretty differently to what I had imagined.

So, when Blenheim Triathlon announced it was still going ahead – albeit four months late – we could not pass up the opportunity to do just one thing on our calendar. Even if we had done almost zero training…

Nerves

It was nerve-wracking, having been cautious throughout lockdown, to attend such a big event. There is a lot of guilt and worry choosing to go ahead with something that carries a risk.

But while social distancing has made life difficult in many ways, I have to admit I am a socially distanced triathlon convert.

With half the number of competitors taking part and strict timings for arrival, there was no queuing for registration or toilets.

Instead of getting kicked in the face in a mass swim start, we set off individually at five‑second intervals; being a rubbish swimmer I waited until the end of our wave and pretty much had the lake to myself after a few minutes. If you know the surroundings of Blenheim Palace at all, you will know how spectacular that was.

For purposes both of social distancing and to prevent drafting, a strict 10m distance was imposed between competitors on the cycle ride (excluding overtaking, which had to be completed within 20 seconds).

Similarly in the run, we kept polite distances – and with only half a field competing there was plenty of room.

We had to carry our own water and supplies as no aid stations were available, meaning there was almost no plastic waste during the event.

The volunteers and organisers were amazing, and there was a general feeling from everyone taking part that we were simply delighted to be there.

All in all, it was the most civilised event I have ever competed in. After so long, it was a huge relief to know it is possible to do some of the things I love in a manner that felt safe and, in many ways, far more enjoyable.

Special

I am sure we will have ups and downs with restrictions in the coming few months. But it gave me hope that, even if it is a while before life is completely back to normal, we are starting to figure out how to carry on in new ways.

We can learn a lot from some of these new ways of life – even little things like it is perfectly possible to carry your own water in a triathlon, avoiding wasting thousands of plastic bottles at aid stations.

This may well be the final event we do this year, as winter feels well and truly on its way, and cases are on the rise.

But I will always have very special memories of my lockdown triathlon – remembering just how magnificent it was to be in such a beautiful place, doing something I love, and feeling so lucky to be there.