Rochdale Tri's Ironman competitor write up

On Sunday 20th July, Rochdale Triathlon Club descended on  Bolton en masse to take on the IronManUK long distance triathlon, held around Pennington Flash, Rivington and Bolton.

Being an international race, interest was high, and 12 entrants from RTC had made physical and personal committments over the past 12 months in order to train for the sold out event, now in its 10th year.  Some athletes had completed similar-distance races before, but for many this was a first attempt at a long distance triathlon.

The warm weather had meant that it was ideal for spectators, which made for an excellent atmosphere as the 2000 competitors set off on their 3,800 metre swim at 6.00am.  The swim was two loops of a 1,900m course in Pennington Flash, and made for an entertaining mornings viewing.

As the day progressed, RTC members seemed to be doing well, with spectators cheering athletes up Sheephouse Lane, a climb that is tackled twice over the two lap 180 kilometre bike course.  Not all club members were as lucky, and there were two notable omissions from the second lap, as Mark Pollitt and Cath Hartwell had both fallen and sadly broken bones during the bike course, ending their day prematurely.

The first members on the to run course was Mark Byrom, competing in his first ever long distance triathlon, and he looked to be enjoying the atmosphere and sunshine as he pushed on into the 42 kilometre marathon. 

There were ups and downs, including battling through injuries and a couple of crashes, but overall, Rochdale Triathlon Club had traveled to Bolton in their number, and were proud to see the ten athletes complete the course, in a variance of times and all with a smile on their face!  

Special mention to Huw Fry, who having previously been unsuccessful to finish IMUK 2013, and after having an exploding tube/tyre preventing him from completing his main training race, maintained his composure and focus to finish IMUK2014 in a solid time of 14:30.

Mark Byrom 11:02:09

Gavin Meadows 11:51:51

Chris Green 12:01:31

Neil Hollingsworth 12:50:26

Mike Galloway 13:12:34

Gary Coppinger 14:08:30

Andy Paslowski 14:09:41

Martin Ormesher 14:19:06

Huw Fry 14:30:10

Simon Beswick 16:32:18

Mark Pollitt - retired injured (broken arm from bike crash)

Cath Hartwell - retired injured (dislocated shoulder from bike crash)

This article can also be found here: http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/88616/rochdale-triathlon-club-take-part-in-the-gruelling-ironman-uk-race