There are some triathlon races that you find out and MUST be cautious about how much info you should share.
Sharing too much good info will readjust many people opinion about the race and next year the race will be a lot bigger and way too crowded!
(it actually happens and I am not saying this to brag, a lot of people want to read other people's experiences before making their mind and decide whether they should register or not a race)
So I was almost NOT writing this race report about Lake Doxa in order to keep it as it is and let it develop via the word of mouth and the organizer advertisements.
Location of the race
I have been in many triathlons in Greece but this one is EXOTIC located. Temperature in July in this place is about 10 degrees less than lower lands and it is ideal (My watch said I was racing at 28 degrees of Celsius) .
You swim in a lake (only a few is organized in lakes in Greece), then you ride five times around the lake with this beautiful natural scenery and then you do the running part running backwards. And that's terrific as you see more views of the lake on your run that haven't already seen riding the cycling route.
Where to stay
There are a lot of traditional styled hotels/rooms near by like THIS ONE if you want to stay for the night and you want to have all comfort.I did something alternative this time. I did camped there finding a good spot under a bunch of pine trees as a lot of as a lot of athletes did too (at no charge, only obligation from the Forest patrol was not to light fires, NOT to trash and don't break tree branches or nail anything in the spruce fir trunks) and it was just amazing waking up by nature sounds, birds, frogs and wind on the tree leaves.
As civilization was ...5km away I went there fully prepared with my own ice on portable fridge in order to have cool water all these days!
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| Well, how about some camping? |
Entry Fee/Starter kit goodies
Cost for an early bird enrolment was 45 euros and in the bag of the organizer your could find a small towel, a green swimming with the company's brand on, a race belt, spring water spray, and other minor some cosmetic goodies. Not bad!
During the race there was water on the run, water melon slices and pudding creams on the finish line!
I shouldn't forget the finishers medal for my little precious collection of good memories in Triathlon :-)
Racing Lake Doxa Triathlon
If you haven't ever swim in a lake the feeling is like standing in a pool with no ropes near by. You can't just stop and take a breath before you go on. You have to constantly move hands and legs as no buoyancy is there to lift you as in sea!On the other hand I found it nice not swallowing salty water while swimming and having taste of salt in my mouth.
Wore my shoes, helmet and cycling glasses, turned on the recording on my GoPro and went off to a 21 km cycling around the lake.
And that was the Bike Leg in the following clip. I just made sure I wasn't pressing too hard and stayed in an average heart rate about 150bpm. There were so many corners in the route that aerobars on my Bianchi wasn't that useful.
Definitely not my cycling performance as it took me 43 minutes to ride the 21km and that is something like 29km/h avg speed..
But hey, I was here to enjoy these three days in nature and relax and not kick my butt on the race :-)
And finally started my jog/run. While on physiotherapy period for a back issue I just jogged the whole run course.
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| Getting to the finish line of Lake Doxa Triathlon |
I used my Polar V800 for the race and this is how everything was recorder by this great watch. (check the price of it here if you are in need of a TRI watch)
I used my V800 for the race and this is how everything was recorder by this great watch. (check the price of it here if you are in need of a TRI watch)
Till next time Lake Doxa Triathlon!
I 'll be back!
🇬🇷Father of three 👫🙆 Marathoner 🏃🏼 Triathlete🏊🚴🏼🏃🏼 AlmiraMan💪🏻 Trumpeteer🎺 Novel Writer 📝 Life is too short to wait. Live today! ✨✨✨ www.justbeforetakeoff.com.
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