After a chilly and misty cycle to the Xcel Centre this morning ahead of the Coventry triathlon, our decision not to take warm gloves with us looked to be the wrong one...

A chilly registration and then the layers of clothing had to come off in order for us to have our numbers written on our legs and arms with a trusty sharpie pen. After a quick race briefing there wasn't too much hanging around before Katherine's start time at five to 9, followed closely behind by Nigel at 9.

16 lengths flew by as we were just grateful to be moving and warming up! Into the transition for the cycle and thankfully the mist had started to lift. As predicted, Nigel sped past Katherine on the cycle but conditions were great and the traffic remained quiet throughout. Back in for the second transition before heading out on the run. 5k run would normally be the easy bit, but with tired legs the first mile was a struggle before reaching the top of the hill halfway. Round the cone and then a delightful downhill pretty much all the way back to the Xcel centre. Job done!

It was a wonderful atmosphere with fantastic enthusiastic support from all the marshals and such an inclusive event. There was a record number of triathlon first timers today, lots of people taking part as a relay, as well as a visually impaired competitor on a tandem and with his guide runner. Having not really been in the mood with the chilly start this morning, we ended up on a high with a big slab of celebratory cake in the sunshine! Sign me up for next year :-)