Distances today were 750m swim, 24km cycle, 5km run.

Race Report from Conor Madden.

“July 09th , 2011, Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare: A sun kissed Ballyvaughan played host to nearly 200 Triathletes who came to conquer the Burren

Sometimes it all just falls into place. The weather, the mood, the atmosphere, the people just gel to make an event feel like it’s something more than just another sports event.

Daniel Kavanagh from Galway, who finished 9th overall, in full flight during the bike leg

Ballyvaughan provided such a day on Saturday as it played host to the second annual Tri the Burren sprint triathlon. The picturesque West Clare village woke up to a clear blue sky and a warm sun. The relaxed local atmosphere along the smiling faces that a sunny morning brings provided all the right ingredients.

The event had a two wave start with 100 swimmers in each wave. Galway Bay provided a stunning backdrop for the 750m swim as over 300 spectators looked on from the quay and cheered the competitors on in the mid day sunshine. It only took 10min 05sec for Oisin McGrath to complete the swim who had Davitt Geraghty hot on his heels for the fastest time just two seconds behind him. Anna Crooks of Predator Tri Club, who looked strong all day, was the first female competitor out of the water. She posted a time of 13min 21sec. All attention turned to the transition area as it filled with athletes hurrying themselves to their bikes.

The bike stage of the Tri the Burren has a reputation among competitors as it demands a hard pull up the famous Corkscrew Hill immediately following the swim. However, Paul Connolly and Milosz Wojcik, both in different waves, seemed relatively unphased and both posted the same time for the 24Km cycle at 44min 23sec. Anna Crooks was still the leading female but Aoibheann Bartley from Cavan Tri Club had made up some good time on the bike and was closing the gap. Hugh Carberry, Pheonix Tri Club, Louis Kelleher, Belpark and Michale Moloney, Watherford Tri Club were all chasing the leaders down making for interesting competition for the winning spot.

The 5k run was an ‘out and back’ course along the coast road. Could an area provide more stunning scenery on every leg? The sun was belting down on the leaders who had a strong headwind to contend with before turning their backs to the wind on the final leg home.

The fastest time on the run went to Colm Turner from Limerick Tri Club who won the event last year. Gerard Daly was just under half a minute behind and Paul Connolly was adding to his impressive cycle with a strong running performance posting a time of 18min 53secs. Ennis Tri Club had a strong representation on the day and Aoife Nash put in a powerful run to take some time out of the lead female Anna Crooks.

Back at the transition area all eyes were on the laneway to see who would emerge first and to see if Colm Turners course record of 1H 12Min could be beaten. In the end victory went to Paul Connolly who put in a time of 1:16:04. Over a minute ahead of second and third placed males Hugh Carberry, Pheonix Tri Club and Louis Kelleher from Belpark Tri Club. The winning female was Anna Crooks of Predator Tri Club who set a time of 1:24:04 smashing the female course record from 2010 by 14 minutes.

8 teams took part on the day, the winning team was Team Killeen who posted a finishing time of 1:25:53“.

Results

Tri the Burren Results 2011