Here’s Dani’s recap of her debut racing in Great Britain Age Group Team colours. No doubt the first of many times.
European Middle Distance Duathlon Championships, Alsdorf, Germany
I was excited in the weeks building up to the race. Excited to represent Great Britain against other countries. Excited to 
finally be able to wear the GB kit that had been sitting in the cupboard for weeks. Excited to be part of the parade of nations. I had consistently ticked off all the training sessions, but as a runner and due to the high standards, I felt I needed to hit 40min for 10km. I wasn’t there. Normally in races I don’t feel any pressure because I’m only representing myself. But I knew I’d put pressure on myself for this one as I wanted to rank as high as possible in my age group.
We left sunny England with one eye on the weather forecast in Germany. Some light showers a couple of days before the race, but race day was due to be dry and fairly warm. While driving through Holland, we found our way into a thunder storm which wasn’t forecast. This settled after we arrived at our Airbnb, but I was now slightly anxious about the weather for race day. I hadn’t brought any wet weather kit with me. I still had fresh memories of a very windy west lancs tri, so I was hoping not to have to endure those winds again. A couple of days later after registering, the weather disrupted my run recce as we experienced another ‘shower’. Suddenly shorts and T-shirt wasn’t a great idea. Luckily it dried up for the parade of nations.
Everything went well on the morning of the race, bike racked and warm up completed. I was fairly relaxed, no rushing around! Due to aiming for my pre recce’d car park, we arrived with plenty of time to spare. The only concern on the day was not being able to take my front wheel off the bike when loading into the car. This has been a concern since it’s service about a week ago, something I will be chasing up once home. If I had a puncture on my front wheel, it likely would have been race over.
Run 1: 10km
The target was to run under 45 mins, starting at 7 min mile pace and increasing if feeling comfortable. I was feeling very cautious not to get carried away and to run my own race. First mile was 7:01, great start! With some more consistent miles, my average pace was 6:59, finishing in 41:21. I felt happy and smiley all the way round, feeling fresh going into T1.
T1 and 60km bike:
When I entered T1, a lot of bikes were still in transition. To my surprise, I was towards the front of the female pack! After getting on my bike, I made sure to start taking on my Maurten drink. The bike course was 3 laps of 20km each, so I was aiming for 2 hours in total, or 40mins per lap with an average pace of over 18mph.
The course was fairly flat with 4 dead turns to take the wind out of your sails. But, the road surface was smooth with no
potholes or traffic to look out for. I started well, but after a couple of miles a steady trickle of women started to flow by, disappearing off into the distance. It was demoralising to watch people glide past with ease while I felt like I was working hard. On reflection, I averaged over 19mph (which is my fastest overall pace in any race!), and the 3 lap splits varied by no more than 30 seconds. On approaching T2, I changed into an easier gear and increased my cadence to prepare for the run. I finished the bike in 1:56:51 – beating my target.
T2 & Run 2: 10km
Coming into transition, there were no bikes immediately next to mine. This meant I was ahead of some of the women in my age group (we were all racked alongside each other). My aim on the run was the same as the first run (sub 45 mins), but aware I would likely drop off as fatigue set in.
I went out hard, after 400m I checked my watch and saw I was doing 6:30 min mile pace. I quickly reined it in and then averaged 7 minutes for my first mile, back on target. I started to overtake people whilst receiving nervous glances towards my race number, checking if I was their direct competition. One of those women was in my age group, which almost felt like redemption for the bike leg.
The temperature had increased and everyone was feeling it. I started to incorporate water stops as there was an aid station at the start of each lap. One cup for me, another for my head! Around half way Matt informed me I was out of medal contention, which was a welcome relief as it allowed me to slow my pace to 7:20 per mile and enjoy the last 2 laps. I ran over the finish line on 42:57 as the commenter announced it was my international debut. Total time was 3:24:45, coming 5 minutes under my target time of 3:30.
I was 5th in my age group and first GB woman in my age group across the line. This automatically qualifies me for next years European Champs, however I’m undecided if I want to do it again!
What three things went well?
– Actually making a plan! Which unsurprisingly meant that all of the pre race controllables went well.
– Pacing. I remained disciplined and stuck to my realistic goals which allowed me to finish the race with a smile rather than a grimace
– Time for travelling: Thursday was a travel day which allowed me enough time to settle in, recce the bike route, do a test ride and run, as well as a bit of parkrun tourism!
What three things would you improve (and how?): 
– Transitions: I felt these were good for me, but after seeing other peoples times I know they need work through practice.
– Bike: improve power and speed and go faster!
– Nutrition: have more of a plan rather than winging it.
Update: 4 days later and I’ve decided I would like to do it all again and I have my eye on the AG Duathlon World Champs for next year 🤣
