Abu Dhabi International Triathlon – a spectator’s review

At almost 6am, I found myself tucking into a second cup of coffee, and then a third – or maybe it was a fourth – Danish pastry from the breakfast buffet at the Rotana Khalidiyah Palace, the official race hotel. I didn’t have to carefully monitor what I was putting into my belly; there were no nerves and there was little rush. For the first time, I was at a major race and wasn’t taking part. Neither was Leanda Cave, I guessed, as she tucked into more fruit and yoghurt at a time when other pros would be getting into their wetsuits! Turns out Leanda had pulled out the day before due to illness. Shame for the race, but nice to know it happens to the pros too.

Breakfast finished, I met up with my friend Chloe and a couple of her friends who I’d agreed to give a lift the couple of kilometres up the road to the transition and start area. I dropped them off, found a convenient parking space and then dived into the electric atmosphere. The race start had been delayed by 30 minutes already, which meant a bit of hanging around for some, but it was great to see all the guys from the team getting amped up and ready for the race. Knowing that I was way too ill to race meant I was actually able to enjoy the whole thing without frustration or envy.

I spent a little while walking down the fence closest to the pro bike racking, checking out some awesome bike porn as well as seeing how pro triathletes like Faris, Lieto, Llanos, Fettell, Bockel, Henning, Swallow, Rollison, Steffen, The Joycinator etc all prepped for their race. It was interesting how some continually checked their bikes, saddle, nutrition, hydration etc, while others laid back on their bags and closed their eyes. Just like at the Age Grouper level, everyone has their own approach.

With three distances and many waves of starters, T2A team members went their separate ways as they indulged in their own personal preparation routines but Ben and I headed down to the swim to watch as the pros set off. As the klaxon sounded, it was a perfect morning with pancake flat water and little breeze. It was amazing just how easily even the lead swimmers looked to be stroking, even though I knew full well that I’d have needed a clean bill of health, a good pair of feet to stick to and no bike or run to follow just to stay with that main pack.

The girls headed off just a few minutes later. Ben and I chatted about the Aussie guy who was doing the MC-ing down on the beach (turns out he did the same job as well as the pre and post race parties at Ben’s Ironman Busselton and my Ironman Wales – cushiest job ever?) and then the guys came through for a run down the beach after the first lap of the swim. Aussie super swimmer Clayton Fettell was crushing it, with a big main pack containing all the main contenders (except Lieto who was quite a bit back, suffering, it appeared, from not having a wetsuit). Then the women came through and it was a similar story, Jodie Swallow caining it and a big pack following.

After watching the guys come out of the water, I wished a few of the T2A guys well as they prepped for their race and I headed around the other side of the transition zone to watch the girls come out of T1. This involved a long run with the bike out of the transition zone and along a  carpeted area, a u-turn after which they were free to mount, and then another tight u-turn and pass over a timing mat before heading out along the Corniche for the first section of the bike leg. 

Easy to say in retrospect but, coming out of the second u-turn, all of the girls stood up on to the pedals to generate some power to get up to speed and I noticed just how strong Nikki Butterfield – distinctive dressed all in red with a red aero helmet and on a bright Red Specialized Shiv – looked. Although a little back on the main pack, her background as a pro cyclist could make her a force to contend with on the 200km bike, I thought. Little did I know...

Unfortunately, after joining forces with Sarah, Ed’s girlfriend, to cheer a load of friends and team mates out of the swim, I soon had to head back to the hotel as my smorgasbord or infections and viruses had me needing a lie down.

After a small nap, I started checking for updates on Twitter and it seemed we had a belter on our hands in both male and female races. So, my friend Rach (who was visiting from the UK but, being a normal person and not a tri geek, didn’t get up at the crack of dawn to watch the race start) and I headed down to the transition and finish area where the atmosphere was fantastic.

I saw several friends and team mates finish or come out after collecting their bikes, and all had tales to tell about great performances or, in Swiss Marc’s case, a fantastic performance after coming off his bike just a few kilometres into the ride after someone threw a water bottle into his path! Getting up to do another 90kms or so after that shows some determination.

We saw the male pros hit the 10k turnaround point in the run, with Faris’ loping stride looking sure to carry him to victory although you could see that Rasmus was running light and fast. The girls came in and Nikki Butterfield flew in and back out of T2 looking great, with Angela Naeth closest behind.

Watching on the big screen, we then saw Rasmus close on and Faris and overtake him with just a few kilometres to go – that was the 1, 2 with Eneko Llanos (surely one of the most underrated and nicest pros out there) securing third place. We then went over again to watch the girls turn around at the halfway stage of the run. Surprisingly, to me at least not knowing much about her, Nikky looked fantastic with an easy, fast stride. Angela Naeth and Caroline Steffen looked great too but weren’t closing. Mel Rollison, who I’d been looking forward to watching run, was moving fast but was clearly suffering – as a 70.3er, the 200km ride was a giant undertaking for her and, it turned out, a bit of an injury had prevented her from running much in training. Just as surprising as Nikky Butterfield running so well was seeing just how fantastically Rachael Joyce ran – she was moving visibly faster than anyone out there.

It finished that way and I think I paid particular attention to (and enjoyed) the women’s race as the field was arguably more stacked and, without any Chrissie there, this year’s IM World Champs in Kona could be an absolute humdinger. Any one of those girls could take it on the day, although there’s clearly a lot of racing to be done between now and then.

So, how was my watching experience? Actually, extremely enjoyable. It was far less frustrating than I expected, but really motivated me to get back out there. It also helped me to realign and reset some of my goals: the smaller races, I realised, no longer mattered. I'm far enough into my 'triathlon career' now to not sweat every smaller race - there'll be plenty more to come. Instead, the focus is clearly on two or three bigger races throughout the year and, if that means skipping smaller races to remain fit, healthy and rested, then so be it.

Although it was fun, motivating and inspiring, next time I'm at a big race, I hope to be racing.