Many thanks to Andrew Tucket who took part in the Outlaw Holkham Half as part of a relay team for sending us his event report:
Taking part in a half ironman race is not something I’d ever expected to do, but the opportunity arose a few months ago when Alex Howard asked if I’d be willing to take his place in a relay team with two old friends of his. Alex was having to withdraw because of injury. I dithered for a few days before replying as I was recovering from a hamstring problem and barely running 5k, let alone 21. But the prospect of trying out something new, and on home turf at Holkham, was too good to miss, so I gave a very cautious acceptance and crossed my fingers that I’d get myself fit in time.
The Outlaw Holkham Half involves a 1.2 mile swim in the lake, 56 mile bike ride out to Flitcham / Dersingham and back, and finally a half marathon in Holkham park. The majority of competitors were doing all 3 activities (proper iron men / ladies) but ours was one of 37 teams doing it as a relay.
The Outlaw event takes over Holkham park for the weekend, with a big camp site and parking area as well as the event village and start/finish in front of Holkham Hall. The ironman event takes place on the Sunday but registration is on the Saturday, which is when a number of other races take place. These included the 10k, and I was able to watch some great performances by RntS runners, including Tim Mardall and Sarah Diss coming second in respectively the men’s and women’s races.
Clive, David and I didn’t know each other and so had arranged a blind date in front of the registration tent. They had both taken part in ironman races before but the whole thing was a bit of a mystery to me and it was helpful to spend time with them learning how it works. Although at the end of the day my brief was pretty simple – stand by our bike stand in the transition area, wait for Clive to appear after his ride to tag me, and then run.
The day came and, unlike David, Clive and team captain Alex who were at Holkham for the start of the swim at 6am, I was able to have a lie-in. When I woke at 7.15 I already had notifications on my phone from the Outlaw app that David had finished his swim in just under 35 minutes and that Clive was well on his way on the cycle leg. I drove to Holkham, went to the designated place in the transition area, and was still double-knotting my laces when Clive came in, nearly 30 minutes ahead of schedule. He tagged me and I was off.
The run comprises 3 laps of a 7km course, which is a bit like the parkrun course in reverse, except that you turn off at the barns and head out on a gravel track and through woodland on the east side of the park before heading back towards the house to start the next lap. It means there is a lot of climbing at the start of each lap. The feed station manned by RntS, one of three on the course, is in a key location, just as you’ve finished the endless climbing and are turning sharp left towards the barns. It comes as a welcome sight, not just because it’s where you finally have a bit of downhill, but because of the amazing welcome and support the RntS team gives the runners. I’m biased, but I know who I’ll be voting for in the ‘best feed station’ award if there is one.
It’s a tough course, not helped on the day by a strong wind from the west, but we were otherwise lucky with the overcast and coolish weather.
My fellow team members were waiting for me at the start of the finish straight when I finally got to the end of lap 3, and we crossed the line together in 5 hours, 39 minutes and 52 seconds, putting us a respectable 13th out of 37 among the relay teams. All in all, a brilliant experience, made all the better by fantastic RntS support.
Also a mention for club member Andrew Mulligan who took part as an individual and completed the event in 5:21:58.