Triathlon aficionado Joanna Ruck tackles another race – but this time,she decided to get some benefit from her family ... In March I took part in Xterra Malta, my first off-road triathlon, or I was new to mountain biking,and grappled my way around without much skill but with plenty of adrenaline. By contrast, Xterra UK takes residence in the beautiful English countryside of Cranleigh in Surrey, or I wanted to see how it would play out on domestic ground.
Having bitten off more than I could chew with my final outing,I decided that 30km of mountain biking was too far external my comfort zone. It was time to call in some reinforcements and race as part of a team. My only previous experience of mountain biking prior to Malta had been with my father, who had taken me down a black route course in Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. Hed recently retired – could I persuade him to join me in a relay? Then my cousin Michael is a powerful runner and the 10km trail run would be perfect for him. After a petite gentle persuasion they agreed to join me in a family off-road triathlon relay team.
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Source: theguardian.com