Ironman Wales 2023 – Alun’s Odyssey…
In one way or another, I have had an association with IMW right from its inception. Rather by accident we were down in Tenby for the very first one, and even though I had raced in many shorter distances, the whole long distance thing seemed very alien. Over the next few years, my involvement with the race revolved around being part of the RNLI water safety team. It wasn’t until I became a member of PYB tri that I even entertained taking on the Dragon, but inspired by the class of 2022, I thought that 2023 was going to be my attempt!
I’m not going to bore you with the ins and outs of my training for the event – as we all know IM training is basically about doing lots of stuff for a long time! Nor will I impose on a minute by minute breakdown of my race……..but what a day, what a day! Even a month on, I get flash backs or see something on social media and it makes me smile. I won’t pretend it wasn’t hard – it’s very hard! I was a shell of a human being by the time I finished – but it was worth every once of pain and suffering. I’ve done many events over the years, but nothing comes anywhere close to Ironman Wales. The atmosphere and support is simply out of this world. It’s like the whole triathlon community gathers in Tenby for the weekend and its’ a celebration of everything that is positive about the sport. The whole day, it feels like every single supporter out on the course is supporting and encouraging you – it is truly magnificent! …and then there is the PYB Tri support crew. What a team! Whenever it was getting hard (especially on those last couple of laps on the run), my PYB family were around the course willing me on – it makes such a difference and so with that in mind, I’ll end this little account simply with a thank-you to everyone who shared that day out in Tenby with me – it was a privilege and a pleasure!
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