Got the Q unfortunately it was joined by an unwelcome D!

Having time to reflect I can only blame myself

Spoiler alert - it doesn't end well!! I'll preamble this blog with a note that I know it's going to sound like some kind of elaborate justification for getting DQ'd for drafting. How saintly I am am how I would never dream of drafting! I'm honestly not, as much as I can say I didn't intend to draft, I WAS drafting and I did deserve to get DQ'd.

So it was the Big Cow sprint triathlon ETU qualifier at Milton Keynes yesterday. If anything at the very least it's a mouthful!

This was to be my first attempt at sprint distance. After a slightly disappointing standard last week I was hoping this would make up for it. To be fair I fancied sprint could actually suit me more than standard as I tend to push harder on shorter distances in running. I also wanted to weigh up my options for next season over what distance to focus on so good chance to see if I can Q for a champs with no roll down spots.

All week I'd been lethargic and achey from Sunday. I felt like I may be coming down with something as it was unusual to take so long to recover from a race. I'd only run 6 miles all week as my calves were tighter than a camels arse in a sand storm. I did a very gentle 30 mile bike with Paul on Friday and decided I'd have a go whatever happens as it's only an hour or so's effort so even if it goes bad things can't go turn too nasty.

Get registered and racked nice an early, go through the ins and outs and I'm set. Usual faffing about with wetsuits, briefings etc. etc. and I'm in the water.

To be fair it's nice and warm. Lakes a little small and the buoys look a bit close for all the 40+ year old MAMILS that are ready to unleash hell on this water. I've never done a sprint and everyone has some kind of look in their eye that tells me I'm about to get the living shit kicked out of me on this swim.

Bang, we're off. The first 200m is best described as getting punched, swimming over people, swimming into peoples arses, everyone seeming to be getting lost, being in nothing remotely close to clear water and drinking loads of it. The first buoy is absolute carnage. I am shocked more people don't drown doing sprint. Starts to clear at about 300m or so and by 450 I'm on toes and starting to relax a bit.

Exit the swim, distraught in 12.34. Actually felt I swam OK and in relation to everyone else that's a pretty solid time.

Into T1, wetsuit off and race belt comes with it. Sod about getting it off suit (should have left it on bike like I usually do), helmet on, shades on and then get shoes on. Start to panic as it feels like it's taking forever. Bike off rack and off to mount line.

T1 - 1.15. Actually not as long as I expected. I don't do all that flying mount stuff and I put my shoes on in T1 so about what I expected. Transitions important in sprint so I've listed them but don't usually. Got to say, at this stage I wasn't happy as I feel a bit panicky about trying to rush so much.

Over mount line and on bike with no dramas. Strange thing with this course is that onto the bike course you have a path about 200m without much room. There are people sodding about with shoes weaving all over the path so it's not ideal, plus at the end of the path is a gate which is single file leading to the course. Considering I'm in panic mode I'm seeing 16 mph avge it's not a great start and I hit the course 'proper' on a mission to get that pace up!

Course is a 'rolling' affair. I'd say from doing a reccy and a race that if you've done it a few times it's a big advantage. Similar to St Neots TT course in that respect and probably worth a good minute advantage on someone with no knowledge of the course.

Into Olney and turn left. Uphill to the first mile and then a good fast downhill section before going up again. I'm passing people all the time and it's on the second hill I catch and get held by a couple of guys.

On the drag into Weston Underwood I'm retaken by these two and another guy all in close orders. I sit back and wait and then through the town I hammer it to go clear. Down the hill and on I relax a bit to what feels race effort (I have that big arse hill at 9 miles coming up) then all 3 come past followed by another couple.

They go clear a bit but I feel OK that I can make some up on the faster bits and I'm feeling OK. Couple more come by together but sit right in front of me. Again back off, look behind and can't see much. On the fast bit again and hammer past everyone in front plus a couple more that have hung on to the group in front. Get to the front but a glance back shows I haven't dropped anyone and I've burnt a match. Push on but it's not long before I hear a disc come past basically followed by a long line of people. I'm having to slow to sit off at the back again.

Pass a few groups of people but they start either hanging directly on the back of me or off the gap I've left in front. I leave a gap, it gets filled. This is very much like Iron Man! Go to overtake a group of 3 and the one at the back has the same idea, and pulls in front. It slows up and we're riding 2 up as a big group with me stuck behind matey who is doing worlds slowest overtaking manoeuvre. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I glance right and see the draft buster looking at me. SHIT I'm bang to rights in the draft zone, there's no way I can go forward as I'd have to cross the middle of the road line, plus I'd have to empty the tank to overtake everyone. I sit up on the bars, I can't really go back as we're slowing anyway and I have probably 3/4 people sitting directly on my wheel.

Not really sure what to do as we are basically moving as a peloton now. We're on the slowest part of the course as we hit Chicheley Hill. In front it's spread across the road and any chance I get I push hard to get past people, but there are slower riders being caught and then reacting to stay with the people that are catching them.

Get to the top of the hill and it spreads out, finally I can get some power down on the fast ride along the A509. I floor it now, but it's same story - I have to sit up and wait as someone overtakes a slower rider. There isn't room to overtake 3 abreast without going over the line very often so I wait, everyone I've passed sits in and as soon as I pull in left 2/3 come past, I wait till it's clear and then I attack, get stuck behind someone overtaking, wait, pull in left and then repeat. I'm pretty sure waiting for someone to overtake is where I got busted 2nd time as draft buster had pulled up and was waiting.

Into T2 you have the reverse of getting on the course - slow down and onto the carpet and through a single gate. Then onto a path which is only 2 riders wide whilst people sod about getting out their shoes off weaving all over the place.

As we approach the carpet to turn onto the country park I slow right down - no point taking risks. One guy flys past and loses it as he hits the carpet, he wipes out and rolls around on the floor in pain. Ouch, count my lucky stars that's not me and have o swerve onto the grass to get round.

Finished up with 32.12 which I was really disappointed with regardless of the DQ. Never felt I had the bike legs, didn't get the best out of the course and should have ridden 808 on the rear. Lost far too much pace on the hills and my effort was all over the place. Also felt far too stressful and panicky.

Into T2, bike on, helmet off, running shoes on and grab run Garmin. Legs immediately feel shocking. I'm thinking how much I hate sprint right now!

T2 - 45 secs. On the money - allowed 2 mins for transitions and took exactly that!

Give it a few minutes and check pace. 5:35/mm - happy days maybe sprint isn't so bad after all! Start overtaking loads of people now. Get my head down and crack on and aim to keep pace at 5:40s. It's a flat course and slightly long at 5.5km. Go through 5km at 17.40 and finish it off at that pace.

Really pleased with run - 18.45 on that was fastest in AG and just outside top 10. Were some quick young 'uns up front and not much run form lately so that's good enough for me right now.

Overall time of 1:05.36 for the distance which WAS good enough for 4th in AG, qualified 2nd in AG for ETU champs and 26th overall. Really pleased that it wasn't a perfect race by far and I'd done what I really wanted to do which is get closer to the pointy end.

Obviously seeing my number on the penalty board as 2 x Draft DQ pissed on my cornflakes somewhat, however there are some positives that I'll take away.

So, I'm a cheating fucker who sat on TWO PEOPLES wheels just so I could ride faster than I'm actually capable of?

Nah, not guilty. I know that happened out there as I saw plenty of it.

Did I deserve to get DQ'd? Yes, absolutely. The rules are the rules and I can't say that I didn't draft. I did, regardless of the fact that I wasn't trying to sit on someones wheel - I was in that draft zone for more than 15 seconds on more than 1 occasion. Therefore I simply can't argue.

I was unlucky yes - the buster wasn't going to bust everyone and my number was standing out more than anyone else I guess. There are people that got away with it and I don't feel I was more obvious than everyone else!

Last week over standard a similar thing happened - I got passed by a 3 up team. I sat back, waited until I had a chance then put the hammer down. I had a fair wait as they were going just slightly slower than I wanted to on the flat so I was patient and waited until a decent chance came. The big difference was the people we passed that day were staying overtaken! On the sprint, it was like a big snowball gathering up groups of people as they were being passed!

The big problem for me was that I got myself into a situation that I didn't know how to react to. I still don't know if I'd do anything different. I literally had nowhere to go. When I had the chance I pushed forward but just got more of the same up the road. The only choices I felt I really had was to sit right back and let everyone pass, maybe drop 1-2 mins off of time OR to just sit there, hope for everything to sort itself out upfront and then get back to legal racing. I went for the 2nd which obviously is a terrible choice!

Really, it's totally down to the fact that I should have made the pass at Weston Underwood when I was clear of everyone and made it stick. Or pushing harder just afterwards when I moved past them. I'd have had no problems because I'd only really need to get to the hill in 1 piece and it'd be unlikely I'd get as many problems on the run in to T2. Do I have the power to make that move? Probably not but you can bet I'm kicking myself hard for not at least trying now! Couple of good riders have said that you just have to put the effort in to get past.

I didn't think I could do it to be fair but looking back I'd be better off scraping myself out of T2 with nothing in the tank but finishing, rather than staying there scratching my head wondering if the pack would spread out like a tit in a trance then getting booted out of the results!

So, originally I did feel a bit hard done by. I blamed all the blatant drafters out there who wasn't making any effort to play by the rules. I felt hard done by that I'd been picked out of a huge bunch and done. Having time to reflect I can only blame myself. It's a hard lesson but not a mistake I will make again!