Welsh Triathlon are pleased to announce the 2019 Welsh Tristar Series. 11 events across Wales which now includes open water triathlons, as well as some of our most recognised children events in what is the biggest series to date.
https://www.welshtriathlon.org/news/welsh-tristar-series-2019_10096?fbclid=IwAR1aa119SbQnVlwFBXsq6jOnbVBqAfvEfI-HKVlQmMqtkaypHFRSXIMOtKk
A well done for a good performance and a thanks to Spencer Jones who has given his race report.
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With an iron distance triathlon (challenge Weymouth) booked, I searched for a testing local triathlon event to get me out of my early season lethargy. I stumbled across The Titan, a new middle distance race based at Bryn Bach Parc and with a £100 race fee,10 weeks before my A race, seemed it seemed like a perfect test.
So on July 4th, me and 66 others were racking our bikes on a damp Saturday morning whilst trying not to become gnat food. After racking I sought the sanctuary of the café (which was conveniently open at this early hour) and counted the bites over a coffee.
After getting the wetsuit on (for the 1st time this year) we were summoned to the lakes edge for the briefing. The swim was a 2 lap affair with an Australian exit. With relatively few competitors the swim was a gentile affair with sighting the big red bouys easy and the only issue being the reeds that infest Bryn Bach Lake. After the swim I was pleased to see there were some bikes still in transition. I used my TT bike with an easiest gear of 39 x 23 and set off with the drizzle lifting and the sun breaking through.
The bike route took us towards Ebbw Vale, across moorland and down a steep descent of aprox 3.5 miles to Llangyniddr then along country lanes towards Brecon where you could build up some speed. Next up was Heol y Senni where an 18% ramp up hit us. Now a rapid return to Brecon via Libanus and retrace our route back to Bryn Bach. With every pedal stroke I was asking myself whether my bike choice (and more importantly gearing) was correct. As I hit the climb I soon realised that it was not. Out of the saddle just about all the way, the hill was Brutal and at one stage I was as close as I have ever been to pushing!! But the 2nd half of the climb eased and amazingly I overtook 2 others near the top so I reckoned I wasn’t the only one to suffer. With ¾ of a mile to go to get back to Bryn Bach the road inclined so I changed to 1st and the chain slipped off, aarrgghh. After 30 s of faffing about the chain was reengaged and I completed my 61 miles.
The run is a 3 lap affair of once around the lake (flat) and the rest around the pitch and putt golf course (not flat at all). Although the run was pretty testing I really enjoyed it as you could gauge where you were in comparison to others and my plan was to run it at my Ironman Marathon pace and I managed to do this.
I crossed the line in 6hrs 37mins and wasn’t sure to be happy with this as I kept thinking was this really a hard event or was my lack of fitness showing? I spoke to a former Taff Ely member Matthew Haines after the event and to quote him “my legs felt better at the start of Ironman Lanzarote than today” so that assured me that it indeed was a toughie.
The event next year has been pulled forward to June 20th next year and so not to clash with the Long Course Weekend and I hope more people enter this event as the more local events the better and I feel this really could become a classic on the circuit.
My advice to anyone who has Ironman aspirations or is indeed down to do IMW in September is, the Titan at 11-12 weeks out from IMW would be a great event to test your fitness and if you can complete this you are well on your way to Iron Distance glory. The event is local, has free onsite parking, held on a Saturday, no more than a 30 minute drive away and at £100 is a bargain compared to some races of this distance. I really do feel that by doing this event it gave me a great boost, towards my A race of Challenge Weymouth.
Ros Edmonds has written an account of her trip to Tenerife where she tackled Mount Teide. Sounds pretty amazing
Mount Teide, Europe’s Longest Continual Climb
The girls were going away on a swimming training camp. So a quick search for cheap flights during the dates they were away resulted in Tenerife. Flights were booked and I was left in charge of accommodation.
I chose El Medano, as it was apparently less commercial and still very Spanish compared to the majority of other resorts near to the Southern Airport….. At least that is the reason I told Ian. Other plus points were, it was a straightforward route up Mount Teide and there was a bike rental shop just 50 metres from the apartment. “What a happy coincidence” I commented when we arrived. “It would be so easy to cycle up Teide from here”
I rented a bike from Bikepoint in El Medano. I did not prebook as advance bookings are not allowed for less than 3 days. They also will rent out any kit you may need. I went prepared with shoes, helmet and bottles. They were very helpful, asked if I wanted carbon, but after experiencing the wind tunnel that is El Medano I requested a nice heavy bike. I wanted to stay on the road! They found me a small triple that was a good fit. It only had one bottle cage and no place on the frame to fit a second, not a problem I thought, I had done my research, I could stop at Granadillia 11km and Vilaflor 25km, I would be fine. (Mistake!!) By 9.30 am I was outside the shop, battling the wind trying to get on the bike (the wind was blowing it from under me) and I wondered if I was mad attempting to cycle up a Mountain in such conditions.
It is apparently the longest continuous climb in Europe from 0 metres to 2107 in just over 37k. Then it’s a downhill into a crater, a gradual uphill follows until the cable car station at 2325m which is the highest point of the road. This is about 51km. I planned to at least get to the café at the Parador Hotel, where many of the cycle teams including Sky, stay for their winter warm weather training. The idea was to get food and water there and perhaps continue to the cable car station before retracing my route back down to El Medano.
Anyway, it was a struggle the first 10k or so battling the wind, upward gradient, horrible road surface and traffic. After reaching Granadilla the surface improved, the wind eased and the traffic got lighter. The scenery was amazing, cactus and wild flowers everywhere, the bright blue sea getting further and further away. I was warm and enjoying myself.
After about 17km I was out of water. I realised I should have stopped at Granadilla. The next place I could get any was Vilaflor still about another 8km. It seems crazy but 8km is a long way when it’s hot and uphill. I stopped for a rest and ate my banana. As the wind had dropped the heat had intensified, so I took off my arm warmers and basked in the sunshine. At this point Ian arrived in his little rented Fiat Panda. I wasn’t expecting to see him; I was so pleased and waved excitedly assuming he would have a drink. Unfortunately he hadn’t, why would he? So I told him to go up to Vilaflor and get me a bottle of water. “Can’t, he muttered nowhere to turn around” and off he went. Anyway I made it up to Vilaflor with a mouth as dry as the Sahara, where Ian stood waving 2 bottles of water at me. This was at about 25km which had probably taken me about 2 hours. I stopped drank one and poured the other into my bottle. Onwards and upwards.
The road after Vilaflor was amazing, no wind, hot and the surface was smooth and wonderfully twisty. I road upwards into huge pine forests, to my left I saw little toy boats in the vast blue ocean and the odd fluffy cloud beneath me. It got harder and harder as I climbed, I got hotter and hotter and each hairpin looked like it must be the top edge of the crater, but it wasn’t! On and on and I got slower and slower and a few super fit cyclists over took me with a cheery “hola”. I was out of water again and the next place I knew was the café at the parador hotel in the crater. Eventually I saw a sign that indicated I had reached 2107m at El Retamar and I turned a corner into an icy blast of wind. Down I went into the crater with the wind dramatically slowing my descent, my bare arms were freezing and my fingers poking from my gloves began to go numb. I reached the level and pulled into a parking area to put on every item of clothing I possessed. Off I went, on the flat now, battling against the wind and a whirlwind of sand spiralling into my eyes and nose. The scenery had changed into a moonscape, I had passed black lava fields on my entry into the crater, now I was in a red sandstone desert with the snowcapped peak of Teide rising another 1600 metres to my left. Very dramatic. But I was struggling, where was the café?? I needed water. The road surface on this stretch is diabolical, dodging potholes and ploughing through the sandstorm I plodded on for what seemed like ages, now upwards again and eventually arrived at the café. Ian was waiting in the café car park and a cyclist who had overtaken me shouted a cheery well done!
After a well needed sandwich, coffee, can of cola, water I decided not to bother with the cable car station. I had done 47km and Ian said he had been to it and there wasn’t really much point in me going any further as I didn’t intend to go up the cable car.
I started the descent, initially downhill, then uphill to get out of the crater. Then a superb but slightly scary descent to Vilaflor. I stopped there for a drink and stretch, then the best bit, the road from Vilaflor to Granadilla is superb, I thoroughly enjoyed myself leaning into the hairpins and freewheeling all the way. The traffic was light and I was getting warmer again, I followed a couple of other cyclists down to Granadilla where the fun ended. Granadilla is the point where the winds start, the road surface is terrible and the traffic starts to accumulate. Down to San Isidro, over the Autopista then the final descent into El Medano. This was really scary, the road is very exposed and the crosswind was blowing me all over the place. The vibration from the terrible road surface gave me numb hands. I had to take the centre of the road as I couldn’t keep my line and didn’t want to get blown sideways into a car. My front wheel felt like it was being blown from under me so I had to reluctantly slow down to keep safe.
I arrived back at Bike point with 2 other cyclists who had followed me down from the Autopista, all of us reliving the horrors of the wind and road surface on the last few kilometres. Overall it was brilliant, so glad I did it! Total ride was 94km.
None of the climb is difficult. What makes it hard is the fact that in 37km there is no flat bits. Obviously some sections are harder than others but there is not one flat section in the whole of the climb. Added to that there is the wind and the heat and the need to carry plenty of water! I’m sure most of you in the club would not find it any problem and would fly up much quicker than me. I really recommend it.
From what I saw Tenerife is brilliant as a cycling or triathlon training holiday, or even just a quick escape from the family holiday for a day or few hours. I was pleasantly surprised at how green it is. A very beautiful Island. We travelled by car to the north, it was all very green and mountainous. El Medano is a nice seaside town but is very windy and is a mecca for kite and wind surfers. Playa de las Americas and Los Chrisianos were worth a visit but not really my sort of place, they are huge purpose built tourist enclaves. But within a few kilometres you feel a million miles away.
We went the last week in February and it was warm enough to swim without a wetsuit and not too hot to cycle. I don’t think I would have attempted Teide in the height of summer.
Climb Profile – Mount Teide
Taff Ely Tri’s head coach Ed Morgan is going to be a commonwealth games baton bearer when it passes through Wales.
Ed is quoted as being ‘chuffed to bits’ to be nominated and then getting the pleasure to be a baton bearer.
The occasion will be part of Aberdare festival that will be on the 25th May 2014.
Well. They call it the Bwllfa Dare for a reason. As Vicky, Gerwyn, Sarah Adams, Jay Goulding and I were soon to find out.
Yet again, Vicky Jones had suckered me into another fell run, now that I had finally thawed out from our previous experience on Craig Yr Allt. Vicky mentioned today that she’s looking for a fresh career challenge: think there might be a few Arabs who could do with some more sand. They just don’t know it yet.
This one was in my local stamping-ground, the Dare Valley Country Park, March 8th. I’m think I’m right in saying that it was the very last race of the Welsh Fell Runners Association’s Winter Series. It actually felt like more like the start of their Summer Programme. The weather was glorious. The sun truly shone on the righteous: I know, because I was stood next to them.
The route was just under 10k, with over 300m of climbing. The race category was described as ‘BS’, which I can only assume means ‘Blinking Steep’. Previous victims of my prose may recall my description of the types who enter in these events. They’ll also recall the dog who beat me home last time, despite simultaneously taking part in his own 6-legged race. He was there again: I’m sure the bit when he cleaned himself was an attempt to pysch me out. But this time I was more prepared. I’d actually read the race pack and brought the proper kit, with some shiny new trail shoes, and even a whistle. An ACME Thunderer for the cognoscenti: nothing but the best. The shoes were the cheapest I could find in Sports Direct though.
Start-time was again a very civilised 14.00 hours, and entry-fee a remarkable £4. These races are amazing value, but with the organisation behind them of far more expensive commercial event. The love the fell racing community has for their sport shines through.
On the hooter, and with absolutely no preamble the race headed north, up the steepest broken terrain. I swore that this time I would run all the way, unless of course scrambling on all fours was required. In which case I’d allow myself to use my teeth as well. I’m proud to say that I met this objective. Admittedly, to the untrained eye it may have appeared a shambling walk at some points, but I never stopped running. Not even when I felt like being sick.
I’d love to say that the terrain levelled off at the top. Running across the heath felt even harder somehow, and not even the views could distract from the effort. We were heading for a Trig marker at the top. I expected a 20 year-old broomstick, with a 5 year-old brush and 2 year-old handle. Turns out it was a big, concrete navigation aid. Who knew? Jay Goulding, evidently. He flew past me on his way back down the mountain whilst I was still trying to make it out in the distance.
If I thought the way back was going to be easier, I was sadly mistaken, The terrain until now had been uneven, slippery, rock-strewn and sometimes boggy: and that was the main path. Now came a near vertical drop, even including streams and railway sleepers (?) to hurdle. Once again, I can’t stress how awesome the regulars are at descending. They seem to flow down like water. I had all the grace of a tumbling watering can. I’ll confess to being relieved to get back onto the comparatively level. Even then, challenges remained. I’d thought that the organisers had slipped up as I’d not gone through every patch of mud in the Park. But then I realised I’d missed a turning. The kind of ground where you don’t check if you’ve left a trainer behind: you wonder about an entire leg.
I wouldn’t like to say I was glad to see the finish and the rest of the gang. It was exhausting, but great fun, and part of me didn’t want it to end. Admittedly, only a small part. Writing this tonight I can’t believe how much the whole of me aches.
But I’ve also got the glow from another great experience. I’ll join Vicky in encouraging all club members to enter one of these events. They’re a great workout, and a great adventure. You might even finish ahead of that blinking dog.
Simon Morgan
Big news, we have secured an extra hour of swim coaching for the club. This is a new session and currently there are no plans to move people around the sessions until at least after this block of bookings, please be patient with us.
This session is for those who have been waiting to join swimming and have put their names down on the waiting list. We welcome other enquiries though, as we wish to fill the session as much as possible.
The new session will be at Rhydycar Pool in Merthyr and will start on Sunday 16th February, it will be for Adult swimmers. The coaching is for those who already swim, but need to improve their technique and fitness.
The session will be from 5pm to 6pm and will be coached by Tony Dally and Louis Adams.
The cost will be £30 and will cover the sessions from 16th Feb 2014 to 6th April. Swimmers will need to join the club too, forms can be downloaded from the fb page.
Any questions please feel free to get in touch.
Even with the weather being so bad at the moment it is great to see that Taff Ely Triathlon members are getting out there racing. This week saw four members doing some fell running. Simon Morgan provides an entertaining report.
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It was all Vicky Jones’s fault. ‘Come do something a bit different’ she said. ‘Ros and I had a go the other week, it was a right laugh. Though we did put the “fell” in “fell running”’, she said.
And so Sara Morgan and I found ourselves celebrating St Dwynwen’s Day up to our knees in mud, covered in scratches, soaked to the skin, and absolutely loving it. In the good company of Ros Edmonds, Vicky, Sarah Adams, 80 plus others, 1 man and his dog.
The race was organised by the Mynydd Du Club ( http://www.mynydd-du.org.uk/home ) as part of a winter series. But apparently there’s events organised throughout the year. There was some initial confusion when we got there, but some of the other runners were keen to help us out. Top Tip 1 – get there early, start might be ages from the sign-up point.
The organisers were slick, gave a good race briefing, had sign-posted the route very well and had marshals at all key points. And all for just £3! Was a bit nervous when we were given a map of the route – my orienteering is right down there with my DIY skills – but it didn’t prove an issue thanks to the quality of the organisation: gave us an incentive to keep up with the field though.
Our thinking was: it’s under 4 miles – how hard can it be? We also turned up with ordinary daps and a technical T, with some heavy warm-up clothes. Turns out gloves, headgear and a wind-proof top were mandatory; trail or fell shoes highly recommended. Top Tip 2 – check the website’s terms and conditions. As proud as I am of my TET Hoodie, it’s not the best thing to run in during a monsoon – I’m carrying enough extra weight as it is.
Quick word on our fellow runners. Quite a mix of ages and looks. A few looked like Forrest Gump after he’d run the US a few times. Should’ve known better when I clocked the worn but high-spec kit that was standard – didn’t pay to under-estimate these guys. Even the dog tied to his master’s shorts turned out to be useful. Top Tip 3 – carry stodgy doggy-snacks to every race to slow down your four-legged competitors. (Ok – there may be a limited market for that one).
We started at the back. Race went north straight away, tarmac initially then muddy trail. Sara and Sarah hit a nice tempo, I left them and started picking off those ahead of me, even as things started getting slippy. Including 1 man and his dog. I was feeling good. But the first downhill was a revelation. The regulars (and their pets) start flying past me as I negotiated the mud, streams and greasy hillocks. There truly is an art to this kind of descending. And, well, mine is a bit like my orienteering. And DIY.
The next half hour was a succession of scrambles up, slides down and stumbles through streams. Think desperate cons escaping the Deep South Penitentiary with the prison guards on their trail. Excepting the fact that the bloke with the dog was actually ahead of us. At one point I was holding the sides of my hoodie out as a sail to push me up yet another hill. Quite how many hills were squeezed into 4 miles is still something of a mystery. Traction was sometimes all but impossible, as more of the field came past. I’d love to say it was all down to Top Tip 4 -wear trail or fell shoes. But, let’s face it, the dog wasn’t wearing them.
And so, after the muddiest, narrowest descent yet, we all got to the finish. Cheered on by the soaked-but-supportive marshals. And a cheerful yip from the dog, by now busily tagging a gatepost. The squelch back to the cars – and Ros’s bike: the woman lives Rule #5 – was enlivened by talk of our (mis)adventure.
But my mind kept going back to the knowing look one of the marshals gave us at the finish. He knew we’d caught the bug and would be coming back.
Run Training for Intermediate Triathletes
Are you an intermediate? If you think you are a beginner then take a look at the run guidance for beginners page. If you are from a running background and run your 5 or 10 km races at less than 6 min/mile or equivalent, then you will already have the running talent or understand enough to coach yourself through a triathlon. However, you will probably find you have to run less than you are used to in order to fit everything else in.
As an intermediate, you will get around a triathlon, but unless you really sort out your running, it is unlikely you will nail the run and finish very strong and high up the field in a race. If running really is a weakness and you find yourself being overtaken in the run by a lot of triathletes you overtook earlier, then spending a period of time sorting out your running should pay dividends in terms of improving results.
As with all training you have to decide how much time you have available to run. If you can spend between 7 and 10 hours a week training, then the good news is, it should be possible to focus your run training with targeted sessions. However, before you decide how many sessions and how far and fast to run in them, you need to establish your base level. A simple way to determine this is to undertake a time-trial on a relatively flat surface. If you like to run races outside of triathlon you probably already know how long you are likely to take for a standard distance given your current level of fitness. The time taken in minutes and seconds in a race or time-trial can yield training paces and speeds for all distances. One of the tried and tested methods to improve your running on this basis is to use VDot tables of paces, as proposed by Jack Daniels (one of the foremost exercise physiologists to work on endurance running) and his VDot values (arbitrary units) are easy to apply. Basically the concept of VDot values is designed so that the higher your number is, the faster runner you are. To give you a idea of how good you have to be for particular VDot values, if you can run 5km in 24 minutes, you will have a VDot of 40, whereas if you can run it in 18 min, you will have a VDot of 56.
Whilst Daniels designed the VDot with pure runners in mind, they are very applicable to triathletes as long as you don’t try to run like a pure runner and train hard for the other disciplines at the same time. Injury or burnout will be the most probable outcome if you do.
Daniels’ VDot tables are easily found on the web and downloaded as spreadsheets. One that is very clear is http://www.runbayou.com/jackd.
Typical sessions for someone running three times a week could include one based on Intervals or Threshold pace and two based based on endurance at a slower pace. As a triathlete, you might find that working on your running for a few months or mesocycles (e.g. two or three weeks of progression followed by a recovery week) can yield great dividends.
One of the common pitfalls that a lot of triathletes fall into is to undertake hard sessions too frequently. As a general rule, less than about 20% of your total distance should come from your fast-paced Intervals and Threshold workouts combined e.g. <10% each. Most (around 80%) of your total distance or run time should actually be conducted at slower paces. These are also worked out for you in the VDot calculator. Pacing is key and if you are inexperienced, learn to use the technology now available, such as a stopwatch, or alternatively, a running GPS with its many functions. Ensure you run at the paces given and not faster.
Interval sessions are based on a number of short fast runs with plenty of rest in between. You can opt to do your Interval sessions at a local 400 metre track where distances are easily known. Set a pace for a distance, typically 400 metres up to 1600 metres or 1 mile maximum and work out around 5 km race pace with an easy jog for about the same amount of time to recover as you take to cover the interval. An alternative to the track is to find a straight flat trail or cycle path and set up the laps as a particular distance on your GPS or other speed and distance device to record your time e.g. stopwatch, for the Interval. As a track example, a triathlete who has recently run an accurate 5 km in 24 minutes exactly has a VDot of 40 and should aim to run a 400 m Interval in 1 min 52 seconds (pace of 7 min 28 seconds per 1600 metres or mile). The total session distance for Intervals run at this pace should be from 2 to 3 miles, or 3200 to 4800 metres, not including warm up, cool down or recovery between Intervals. Remember if you are running up and down hills these paces do not apply. Other important aspects that you should include in your Interval sessions are a dynamic warm-up and some drills to improve your leg speed and body posture.
Threshold sessions are usually continuous efforts of 20 minutes or longer run at a pace that is at least 25 sec per mile slower than your Interval pace. There should then be enough recovery after this effort to bring your breathing and heart rates back to that of easy paced running. If your Threshold efforts are longer than 20 min, then slow your pace by a few seconds per mile. Again as an example, a triathlete with a VDot of 40 should aim to cover a flat 2.5 miles at a Threshold pace of 8 min 12 seconds per mile, a total of 20 min and 30 seconds, not faster.
Most of your other sessions should be run at much easier paces as longer, continuous runs. The paces are defined as Easy pace and Marathon race pace. The slower of these is Easy pace, which for the example VDot 40 triathlete is 10 min 11 seconds per mile, whereas Marathon race pace is 8 min 46 seconds per mile. Running most of your miles between these paces will help your aerobic system develop and also allow your body to recover.
To reiterate, around 80% of your time or distance should be run at a sustainable pace that feels relatively easy. All of your longer sessions should be run between the Easy and Marathon race paces and the 80% guidance on the time or distance spent at these paces does not change whether you are a pure runner or triathlete.
By Ed Morgan
It’s good to see that Taff Ely Tri members are racing early in the New Year. Vicky Jones gives an account of the Tor y Foel fell running race.
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.3 km with 370m of climbing – it seemed like a good idea in December – excellent training for the climbs of the Slateman triathlon I’ll be doing in May. 99 of us gathered on the Taff Trail near Talybont Dam in beautiful weather for the 2pm start with Ros and I representing Taff Ely Tri. From the start it was clear that most of the gathered crowd were experienced fell runners but we didn’t let this put us off.
The run began with a steady incline made difficult by uneven ground with the sun in our eyes and by the time I reached the point where I could see the summit far in the distance the first runners were already ¾ of the way up – and looked to still be running! Along with most of the competitors the slog to the top was done slowly, with no hint of running, in fact at one point I was moving so slowly that the auto-pause on my Garmin kicked in and didn’t resume for four minutes!! If you’d have asked me at this point if I was enjoying it the answer would have been an emphatic NO. But then, the summit, there were four enthusiastic and supportive marshals, amazing panoramic views and a lovely downhill stretch.
Once I persuaded my legs to move again I was off and amazingly I was smiling. From there it was a mix of running, slipping and sliding to the end. The support throughout from marshals and other competitors was amazing. The results aren’t out yet but the timing guy told me I was sub 60 minutes so I’m pretty pleased with that and am already looking forward to my next fell race. If you haven’t tried fell running then I heartily recommend it – there’s another event in a couple of weeks and at only £3-5 an event there isn’t really an excuse not to 🙂
For more information and fixtures have a look on the Welsh Fell Runners Association website http://www.wfra.me.uk/index.htm
Date: Tuesday 10th December 2013
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: Abercwmboi Rugby Club
Committee Members:
Adrian Colley (Chairman)
Helen Colley (Secretary)
Ros Edmonds (Treasurer)
Tony Dally (Club Welfare Officer)
Ed Morgan (Head Coach – BTA Level 3)
1. Chair’s report
AC welcomed all to the meeting and confirmed the club committee members as it currently stands.
AC noted club achievements through the year, including club member race results, coaching awards (Ed Morgan receiving RCT Coach of the Year Award) and a newly qualified coaching team. To date this includes:
BTA Level 1 – Helen and Adrian Colley, Des Devlin, Louis Adams and Martin Davies
BTA Level 2 – Tony Dally
2. Treasurer’s report
RE confirmed the summary of membership which has increased significantly over the year.
A summary of income and expenditure was confirmed. The club is currently in a positive finance position but could be doing a little better. RE confirmed that the club swim fees have not increased over the past few years. It was confirmed that this would be addressed in a later agenda item.
RE confirmed that a second round of Community Chest money was won by the club, and this would be put towards further Level 2 Coaching qualifications.
3. Ratification of Club President: Phil Gibbon
EM confirmed that Phil Gibbon is our Club President and that he sent his apologies for the meeting. Phil is a founder member of the club.
It was voted that Phil remains in the position of Club President.
4. Club Fees for 2014 – 2015
RE proposed that the Club swim fees for 2014 increase to £45.00 per quarter for adult members and £23.00 per quarter for the junior members.
This proposal was put to the vote and carried.
5. Web-site developments, social media, FB, Twitter
Louis Adams explained the developments of the recently launched club website:
www.taffelytri.org
Louis encouraged all members to actively start using the website as a source of information. The club would also like to ensure that any race reports are completed after events, so the website is currently updated with current activity. Louis reported that there were 500 hits on the website during November.
EM confirmed that he has added content to reflect coaching tips. EM has also created Twitter accounts so regular coaching information is communicated.
Louis will also be creating Drop Box sites, which will assist the Coaching Team and also a members only site will be created for future use. This could include swim video analysis etc.
Louis confirmed that new membership forms will be available from the website.
6. Triathlon Events for 2014/Social Events/Committee
Various suggestions were made for the club championships for 2014. Votes confirmed the following:
Ammanford Sprint Triathlon – Novice Championships – 13th April 2014
Tata Steel Olympic Triathlon – Club Championships – 1st June 2014
AC proposed that he would like to see a social committee developed, which can include friends and family of club members. It was proposed that a club social secretary is voted in and will be addressed in a later agenda item.
7. Coaching Developments/sessions
EM confirmed the current coaching team (noted in item 1). EM confirmed that Adrian Colley and Louis Adams will be taking the Level 2 BTA qualification, and Darren Hancock will be taking his Level 1 BTA qualification in 2014.
EM confirmed that the club has purchased a new camera to use for swim analysis, which can benefit members considerably.
EM proposed that TD steps down from coaching the junior session due to a conflict of interest, as Tony is the Club Welfare Officer.
The club offered an extra swimming session on a Wednesday evening (for inexperienced swimmers) to assist with the current demand and is proving to be very successful. This will continue for 2014.
EM confirmed that the Tuesday night bike sessions will be repeated, once the lighter evenings start.
Des Devlin will also be starting a new run session in Treforest Industrial Estate in January, details will be posted on FB.
Saturday and Sunday bike rides will be posted on FB as usual.
Members agreed that run sessions for the juniors would be welcomed during the spring/summer. It was suggested that these sessions could be run before the swim sessions on Sunday.
Details of any confirmed sessions will be posted on the website and FB.
8. Safeguarding changes
TD explained the recent changes from CRB for DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service).
Welsh Triathlon are reviewing their own internal procedures for DBS at present, and these procedures have not been confirmed to date.
TD confirmed that we are registered with RCT as a “safe club” and follow all policies and best practice.
Louis Adams asked if the safeguarding logo could be placed on our website. TD to confirm.
9. Committee expansion
As the club is rapidly expanding new committee members need to be voted in. EM proposed that the new committee should include: Membership Secretary, Website Co-ordinator and Social Secretary.
RE further explained that the role of Treasurer had increased over the year, and she was finding it very hard to oversee the volume of work involved. It was proposed that a committee role is developed which would split the current Treasurers role in two, therefore, having a Treasurer and Membership Secretary.
10. Following a formal vote the 2014 Club Committee is represented below:
Chairman – Adrian Colley
Secretary – Helen Colley
Treasurer – Ros Edmunds
Membership Secretary – Louis Adams
Website Co-ordinator – Des Devlin
Welfare Officer – Tony Dally
Social Secretary – Chris Armstrong
11. Community Chest application
TD confirmed that a second round of community chest funding had been awarded and sign off had been completed.
ED thanked all involved in the application process.
12. Club Kit – update
AC highlighted the recent problems that we have had in connection with our new suppliers of Club Kit. Currently there are 10 cycling jerseys waiting to be sent. New suppliers are being approached and we hope to have confirmed details for ordering in the New Year.
Chris Armstrong confirmed that he can also repeat the t-shirt order if demand is there.
Discussions also took place for the design of an official Club banner and possible sponsorship. This will be looked into by the committee.
13. Welsh Tri membership and other affiliations
TD confirmed that there are many benefits to joining Welsh Triathlon, one being the insurance and public liability. The full membership details can be found on the Welsh Triathlon website. www.welshtriathlon.org
CTC Affiliation;
Members agreed that they are happy to continue with the cycling affiliation to the CTC for Time Trialling events.
Welsh Athletic Affiliation;
Members agreed that they were happy with joining the Welsh Athletic Association. A fee of £50.00 is required along with an official running vest.
This would allow members to enter running events as TET
14. AoB
The pool time has been confirmed for Wednesday and Sunday at Abercynon. Reports have been made that Abercynon may be cutting its pool times. In light of this point and the increase in the number of enquiries to join the club, members of the committee are currently looking into pool time at other leisure centres and its viability.
AC thanked all for attending and wished all club members well for 2014!
Attendance Record:
Darren Hancock
Chris Armstrong
Vicky Jones
Jamie Massanet-Nicolau
Simon Morgan
Richard Morgan
Louise Ward
Nick James
Paul Figgins
Lee Rossiter
Allan Gill
Stuart Grant
Gemma Devlin
Des Devlin
Marie Claire Hopkins
Donna Hunkin
Ed Morgan
Alan Edwards
Adrian Colley
Helen Colley
Louis Adams
Tony Dally
Ros Edmonds