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![]() How to succeed at Blenheim Palace Tri Posted on: Thursday 2nd June 2016 Bookmark This | Print This Page | Send To A Friend | Post A Comment Are you racing at the Bloodwise Blenheim Palace Triathlon on 4th-5th June? Make sure you have the best race possible with our guide to the second largest triathlon in the UK. Blenheim Palace, the gift of a grateful nation to its saviour John, Duke of Marlborough, is also a gift of a venue for triathlon. Loads of space for parking, a competitor village and a gorgeous view or vista at every turn. There's a lake that, basically, just says "swim in me", a transition area that's the Palace's front yard, a closed cycle circuit that offers plenty of interest and yet is not overly physically challenging and a run route that you will actually want to go back and walk around afterwards -- all of this makes the Blenheim Palace Triathlon a paradise for a novice triathlete. It isn't entirely snag free, however, as the swim start is at the bottom of the hill from transition and you've got a 400m uphill run back to transition, while on the bike course there are a handful of cattle grids, although all these are covered for the race, and you'll definitely want to stay on the road rather than going alfresco if you want to avoid trouble. Vital facts
READ THE RACE PACK FULLY!BackgroundThe Bloodwise Blenheim Palace Triathlon is now in its twelth year and is well established as an event in its own right, rather than just as a feeder for the AJ Bell London Triathlon. Run over two days and with over 5,000 participants in 2015, it now ranks as the second biggest triathlon event in the UK (London, obviously, being the biggest). Based in the lake and parkland surrounding Blenheim Palace - what other triathlon takes place in a World Heritage Site? - this is a novice-friendly event with an interesting, but not overly taxing, set of conditions. The swim
It is an 'in-water' start which you reach via a floating pontoon and so you may have to spend some time in the water before you start. While you almost certainly won't need a neoprene cap you may benefit from two ordinary caps but do remember to put yours on first, then your goggles and then the official cap on top.
The swim exit is by the fishermen's boathouse and based on past years this uses the same floating sections to make a large ramp. Once out of the water the area is rather limited in size, you run through a shower that's only one person wide, and the steps that lead up to the path are both shallow and narrow so it's worth taking care rather than bounding into them as a stubbed toe at this point is probably not a good idea. You now face a long (400m) uphill run to the transition area. The first section is over a gravel path (which will be matted) before you reach the Water Terraces when the path levels out and you turn right into a service yard before entering transition through an arch. We ran this section with a Forerunner and the elevation trace is available on Garmin Connect through this link. The bikeThe entire cycle route is within the grounds of the Palace and its Park and should, apart from official vehicles, be entirely traffic free. We used a Garmin Forerunner to trace one lap of the bike and you can see the course profiles on Garmin Connect through this link. One loop of the bike course is represented by lap one on the Garmin trace.
An experienced road cyclist could hammer this course at very high speed with no worries at all. However, there will be a lot of inexperienced cyclists and a lot of very inexperienced triathletes out there so you do need to take sensible precautions and look ahead to make sure that those you are approaching from behind are not likely to stop or swerve when you approach or pass them. These cautions aside, we would far rather ride a circuit like this than take our chances on the open public highway - any day! You exit the transition through the main gates, mount on the tarmac and then immediately drop down the slope to the Vanbrugh Bridge. Remember, this section is all two-way traffic - the runners are coming up the hill towards you. There is also a pedestrian crossing point just before the bridge to be aware of. Once over the bridge the cycle route bears left and you are into the park proper. The road rises very gently between open pasture on the right (mind the electric sheep fencing...) and woodland on the left before branching left again and making a short descent into the woodland. From this point, approximately 2k into the ride, you will begin to climb up through the wood to the highest point on the ride. This is not a steep climb but inexperienced riders may be caught out by the sudden transition from down to up and fail to select the right gear quickly enough.
The route continues bearing left to pass the Pleasure Gardens where there is the only 'sleeping policeman' on the circuit, this is just outside the station. You are now heading back to the Competitor Village area and the Palace itself with one more cattle grid to cross (uncovered, this is the bumpiest of them but on race day you probably won't even notice it under the covers) and then you turn left into the main drive where you will, once again, have runners on the right-hand side of the road coming towards you. The cycle route sweeps right past the main visitors entrance and then left in front of the Palace where you will either turn right and start another loop or stop before turning left into transition. The runYou leave transition through a gate on the right-hand side at the front which brings you across the grass by the (dry) moat and then over the bike course on an access bridge before tracking round the outside of the coach park and then heading up the main drive. At this point you will be on the left-had side of the road with cyclists approaching you on the right-hand side. Dead ahead will be the finish area but you have to go a fair distance yet so you bear left and head out for the Woodstock gate.
Once back to the bridge you will be kept on the left, there are cyclists coming down the hill towards you, as you climb back up to the front of the Palace and then start either your second lap or run straight on to the finish. We ran the route with a Garmin Forerunner and you can get the trace off Garmin Connect through this link. The trace for lap 3 represents one loop of the run with lap 4 being the extra bit down to the finish. Transitions
The transition surface is carpeted gravel but it will be well worth bringing a small towel or mat to change on - an old bath mat is ideal. If you use a brightly coloured one it could make your bike easier to find - although the rows are well signed - and it's perfectly legal. Remember, flags, balloons, windmills, etc, tied to the racking or your bike are not allowed, think smart here! Other informationREAD THE RACE PACK FULLY!Blenheim Palace is a massive tourist attraction. If the weather is good then expect there to be a lot of people there who have not got the faintest idea what a triathlon is, how fast bikes go or where runners will be headed. And the parkland is an ideal area to walk dogs... Be aware that, despite designated crossing points, the whole circuit is pretty much open season for someone to walk out in front of you. We are not saying that it is a dangerous venue -- far from it, it would be hard to think of anywhere that has the potential to be as safe as the Blenheim Palace Triathlon for novice triathletes -- but you will also be dealing with the unrestrained general public so do be aware that they can do stupid things. If it rains then it's a pretty exposed site and the car parks can turn into a bit of a quaqmire. Remember to take some warm dry kit just in case and if it looks like rain use a bin bag to wrap your kit in while it's in transition. ![]()
![]() 5 comments | Post a comment Re: How to succeed at: Blenheim Posted by FoxleyPosted at 14:32:03 26th May 2010 Reply to this Spoke too soon, just seen the link to convert to metric! Re: How to succeed at: Blenheim Triathlon Posted by AlberryPosted at 18:37:09 7th Jun 2012 Reply to this Looking forward to my first race - excited and nervous in equal portions. Thanks for this great description - really helps to visualise the course. I just a have clear vision of the finish line, beer tent and a bath! Re: How to succeed at Blenheim Palace Triathlon Posted by e1PetePosted at 10:52:16 29th Apr 2014 Reply to this The cycle leg descriptions does not match the Garmin route except for the first 7 k. The description says that at the end of the lap you pass in front of the palace turn right and head down the hill to the bridge again for a second lap. The Garmin route does a switchback in front of the palace then does a smaller loop around part of the lake to the north before passing in front of the palace in the opposite direction to the finish - none of htis is in the description. The Garmin route is nearly 10K so assume the distance is correct - but the description misses all the last part out. Can you clarify please? Re: How to succeed at Blenheim Palace Triathlon Posted by e1PetePosted at 10:58:57 29th Apr 2014 Reply to this Oh I see now - one lap is cycle and one of run all mashed together. |
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Posted at 14:31:21 26th May 2010
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