Pink Triathlete

Setting

I had an unfair impression of Lisbon from my time crewing the tall ships race as a anxious 16 year old. I hated the city. I felt out of place, nervous, uncomfortable and suspicious. Thank god I kept my mind open enough to go back. How wrong I was. Lisbon is absolutely stunning and everything I could ever hope for on a city break. Artwork everywhere- sculptures, paintings, gardens with water features, architecture galore. The whole place is a feast for the eyes. Every corner has some clever design or charming courtyard. Especially the Parque das Naçöes, where Challenge Lisbon is held. It was the sites of the 1998 expo and now the perfect setting for events.

We stayed on a small boat through air bnb in the next marina over. It was quite novelty and a little like glamping but with the added fun of assembling a bike on a jetty, whilst trying not to drop any bolts or important bits between the slats.

I’ve flown with a bike once before and it resulted in a bent skewer, and so this time we learned from our mistakes and rigged an alternative system into my bike box (guys, just use a Bike box Alan- save yourself this trauma🤣).

Before

I’d say Challenge Lisbon was probably one of the least well organised events I’ve done. Hardly any comms, race briefing the day before which is a little too late, really. I had it on good authority that this isn’t usually the case, but there just seemed to be a lack of excitement or passion from the team. The participants were very serious, not as friendly and chatty as I’ve found at other events.

Annoyingly, I received my period just before the race. Some say this is great because your testosterone levels are higher but that’s only if the cramps don’t bother you. I knew they would later.*

Swim

I feel as though I have my organising down nowadays. Transition set up promptly, wetsuit on and- oh- a giant hole in my left thigh. Never mind, it’s warm.

Top tip- I put Vaseline everywhere because I knew it would be hot hot hot! 28° in the shade and I could just imagine the chafing would be horrendous. I opted for a bikini instead of a bra just to have as little fabric to rub as possible. I Vaselined my arms, neck and other places not fit to mention here!

The swim brief was a joke delivered by a woman and a traffic cone. Couldn’t hear a thing- fortunately I studied the map.

Swim start was like the pre covid days- my wave (wave 2) were led down the marina ramp and into the water. It was deliciously warm and not so deliciously salty. The guy next to me shivered and declared it was absolutely freezing. I’m quite ashamed to say I think he had a regional Uk accent. It was bath water and this guy was tripping. It must have been 20°, if not more!

The swim felt good despite my concerns over wearing a wetsuit for the third time since last year. I kept up a good rhythm and the constant turns at the bouys helped the monotony. Frustratingly at the bouys, a certain swimmer in front insisted on changing to a breast stroke to turn, which took up more space and kicked me several times. On the last bouy the rope was taut and too near the surface; he got stuck and ended up kicking me in the chin. It didn’t hurt but it reminded me of the good old pre-covid days of racing.

On the swim exit it funnelled into a carpeted stone ramp, of which there was a hidden metal grate that I sliced my big toe on. It bled a bit in transition but I just got on with it and moved onto the bike quickly.

Bike

Well, this felt like a fast course. 4 motorway laps of a completely closed road (which was nice), minimal potholes and one hill at the end where the turn around was. The first lap was great- it was beautiful! It was fairly cool still and I found sticking to the watts easy enough (160-180w). I would say I managed to stay either in aero bars or on the drops for 90% of the ride. The reason I spent so much on the drops was because I noticed very quickly that my handlebars were squiffy (probably shook loose by all the cobbles on the way to transition). It wasn’t a major disaster but something I’ll learn from as it made the pressure on my right arm uncomfortable in aero for a long time. I also noticed my chain slipping (guess I needed to reindex it after the flight), but as it goes it wasn’t terrible. Very happy with the ride- chatted to an American guy who is doing the world record attempt for half distance with his brother (this was number 48 I think).

For nutrition I ate 5 nakd cashew cookie bars. I drank one bottle of water (with 2 PH 1000 sachets and in transition before I had a bit of tailwind. Don’t come after me, I know I’m shit at hydrating.

Run

Well, with my new watts target I wasn’t sure if I’d cooked it or not and I’m proud to say I was far from it! Legs felt great! Uterus, however, was a total dickhead. I took some Anadin extra in transition because towards the end of the ride I could feel the cramps coming.

The first lap was uncomfortable but then I noticed I was tag teaming the lovely lady in front who was chatty! Yay! I made a buddy and started to talk- turns out she follows Stomp the pedal and knew who I was. It was great: it took my mind off the cramps till the meds kicked in and she even decided to Jeff with me for the rest of the race (running 9 minutes, walking a minute). We had a great time! With many more smiles than anyone else participating! Thank you Kate!

They had 2 decent water stations and a sprinkler near the start and end of each lap which was an excellent addition. I kept my water bottle from each station with me so that I had finished it between on my walk breaks. I took 2 PH salt tabs. I felt as though I hydrated really well on the run and I didn’t get a stitch or anything.

And most importantly, at the end I felt like I could have carried on which makes me feel as though I have room to improve and that Ironman training is working.

Overall

We had to ask for our medals- ha! And the food was a bit rubbish after (two small slices of pizzas and a tiny beer that I didn’t drink)- no comparison to Outlaw there!

Having said that, this was actually a great race. So the people weren’t overly friendly and the organisation was a bit lacking but at the end of the day you make of it what you want and I had a great time. This is the last year of this event and it shows but despite that I would go again to the one that replaces it. And I would recommend it. If anything, the setting is brilliant and perfect for a mini break.

I got a personal best on my swim and bike, and an overall middle distance PB. I’m very pleased with my run time especially with the heat.

I feel as though I paced it well, but probably could go a little harder. I’m certainly not disappointed with a 29min personal best though!

*for anyone interested in what I use in a triathlon read on. I use a mooncup- absolutely life changing if you can use one. Never even feel it in and it’s safe to wear before you come on so you’re not caught short mid race if you suspect you may start. No dryness and for me it lasts the whole race. Top tip- practise to get the right fit and don’t pull it out too fast.