Jan and Sarah enjoyed a challenging and successful weekend at the Sportiva Wimbleball Multisport Festival, collecting three age-group podium finishes between them while taking on trail running, open-water swimming and triathlon.
There was also an important volunteering contribution, as Sarah swapped racing for marshalling duties during Sunday’s events.
Age-group success in Saturday’s trail race
The weekend began with Jan and Sarah both lining up for the 5K trail race on Saturday. The demanding off-road course produced excellent results for the two Carn Runners, with Jan finishing first in her age group and Sarah taking second place in hers.
Sarah added another event to her weekend by completing the 2.5K swim. It was another strong open-water outing following her appearance alongside Jan and Judy at the St Michael’s Mount Swim.
The weather provided an additional challenge throughout Saturday. The rain was described as biblical at times, making an already testing weekend of outdoor events even tougher.
Jan takes on the standard-distance triathlon
Jan returned to competition on Sunday for the standard-distance triathlon, completing the swim, bike and run before securing another first-place age-group finish.
Wimbleball was familiar territory for Jan, who had previously completed an IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon there three times. That experience meant she already knew how unforgiving the bike course could be, but the steep climbs were every bit as brutal as before. The wet conditions added another difficult element to the ride.
The run course was no easier. Rather than offering much relief after the bike leg, it climbed all the way to the trig point and proved even harder than expected. On this occasion, completing the standard distance rather than taking on a longer event felt like a particularly welcome decision.
Racing and volunteering across the weekend
While Jan was tackling the triathlon, Sarah supported the Sunday programme as a marshal. Her contribution completed a varied weekend that included racing on the trails, swimming, volunteering and camping.
Despite the steep climbs and relentless rain, it was an enjoyable trip with plenty of added camping fun. It also continued a busy run of multisport adventures for Jan and Sarah, who previously represented Carn Runners during the Outlaw Triathlon Weekend.
Congratulations to Jan on two age-group victories and to Sarah on her trail-race podium, 2.5K swim and marshalling contribution. Three podium finishes made this another memorable multisport weekend for the Carn colours.
