220 Triathlon September 2020

Being one of the 400 open-water swimmers lucky enough to join Ross Edgley for the last half-mile of the Great British Swim in 2018, then completing some cold-water training with him, have to be two of my most memorable swim moments. Ross had completed 157 days at sea and 1,791 miles of difficult open-water swimming and as he approached the group who had swum out to meet him, cheers rang out, an airoplane display team flew overhead and Ross struggled to hold back tears as he finally approached land. We’re sharing some insights from his new book The Art of Resilience this issue (p33) and I think we can all learn from his approach, training and attitude. Even if our swims are more likely to be around a slightly chilly…

U.S. brand Quintana Roo were one of the first tri wetsuit brands back in the eighties. It’s been some time since they’ve had wetsuits on these pages – in contrast to their bikes – but now they’re back with a two-strong range of new neoprene. Seen here is the HydroSix (the not-dissimilar £479 HydroFive is featured in our bumper wetsuits test starting on p53), the top-end suit of the two and made entirely of high-grade Yamamoto 39 and 40-cell neoprene throughout. Features include SCS Nanocoating for boosting hydrodynamics and QR’s own ‘Sensory Catch and Feel Panels’ that aim to give the swimmer more purchase on the catch phase of the stroke. QR’s big sell is that it’s made with a total number of 27 seams – compared to 35-60 seams…

UNDER £1.35 VOOM POCKET ROCKET £1.35 The texture’s akin to a frozen energy gel and we like it. Each bar delivers 150cals from raw cane sugar and glucose. Plus there’s 150mg caffeine and 2g beta-alanine for stimulating and buffering duties. voomnutrition.co.uk UNDER £1.40 HIGH5 SLOW RELEASE £1.37 This moist, tasty blueberry and raspberry bar contains 151cals with 92cals deriving from oats, dried fruit and isomaltulose. Cashew nuts elevate the fat content to over 40cals with the remainder coming from protein. high›ve.co.uk UNDER £2.50 33FUEL AMORE £2.49 33Fuel’s products are expensive but that’s down to the quality ingredients including maca, an Andean root purportedly good for endurance. Each delicious bar’s split into two with a mighty 265cals overall. That’s 172cals from carbs and 76cals from good fats so ideal for long-course…

220 Triathlon was just three years old in 1992 but racked up another classic cover showcasing pro triathletes Robin Brew, Richard Hobson and Steve Burton, shot against a moody claret backdrop. Elsewhere in the issue, the latest dazzling road helmets were rated and reviewed, while the swim training section was given the early nineties graphic design treatment! ALSO IN OCTOBER 1992... Reigning men’s champion Mark Allen survives a scare from Cristian Bustos at the Ironman World Champs in Hawaii. Allen, having feared the Chilean while visualising the race the night before, broke free with 15km of the marathon to go before breaking his own course record in 8:09:08.…

The Netflix documentary Athlete A delivers a disturbing insight into the toxicity of USA Gymnastics following more than two decades of child abuse that took place at the hands of team doctor Larry Nassar. The 56-year-old received jail terms totalling 360 years in 2018, the court cases made more poignant by the testimonies of 156 survivors. To see it retold through their eyes not only highlighted the atrocities of Nassar’s crimes, but also how USA Gymnastics failed these women. It showed how easily a lauded national federation, one that revels in its trove of Olympic gold, belies a reality of harbouring serial abuse. With the pressures of reputation, sponsorships and jobs to uphold, priorities were warped, others became unforgivably complicit. “Those in positions of power need to find the strength…

“I know I’ve been to those dark places before. I know I can cope” I’ll be taking on a triathlon- based ultra endurance challenge, doing the full length of the UK. So myself and fellow adventurer Frankie Tinsley will cycle from Land’s End all the way to John O’Groats – and on the way concurrently swim the length of the largest lakes in England, Scotland and Wales, and run to the top of the highest peaks in each, too. You could do that comfortably in 30 days, but we’re trying to do it in 14 days. To give you an idea, an average bike day will be 160 miles and the swims will range from four miles across Lake Bala to 10 miles on Windermere and two 12-mile swims across…