Chris Worfolk's Blog

Leeds United confirmed their promotion a few weeks ago, but clinched the Championship title on Saturday. They finished with six wins in a row. Let’s hope that serves us well in the Premier League next season.

I first did the Phoenix Park Duathlon back in 2023 and it was a well-organised and inclusive event. This time, DUCC brought a whole team.

The event was well organised again with loads of marshals available. There was a slight delay to starting the race when the ambulance broke down en route to the event but everything was still very smooth. It went off in three waves and despite promising to run a 25-minute 5k I ended up in the last one.

The first run was two laps of the field and nice and flat. Transitioning on the bike was fine and we set out to complete three laps of the park on fully closed roads. The bike course is fast, too, with only one meaningful hill at the end. I was able to stay aero for a lot of the first lap. On the second, the wind picked up and it was harder to stay on the aero bars but it calmed down again for the final lap. Another smooth transition and it was onto the run for a final lap around the field.

My total time was:

1:23:10

I was slightly faster across everything compared with two years ago. I am pleased with that as I felt like I was fitter back then. I looked at my heart rate and I was working slightly harder this time but I also think my running form has come on a lot and that has helped.

Well done to Hugh, Finn, Paddy and Naz who has completed the event. Paddy won his age group and Naz completed the race despite dealing with a medical emergency in the middle. Great effort all around. The photographers managed to find me this year: thanks to Triathlon Ireland and Belpark Triathlon Club for the pictures.

Last weekend I went to Navan parkrun. It is a three-and-a-half lap course following the loop around Blackwater Park. One hill but a slow downhill, too. Some nice views of the river and what looks like an old mill. Thank you to all of the volunteers for looking after us.

But you don’t look autistic at all is a book by Bianca Toeps. It’s a great read for anyone who is/suspects they are autistic or anyone with a friend or family member who is autistic and wants to understand that person better. it explores the phenomenology of autism mixing together Toeps’s personal experience, interviews with others and some solid science, too.

Last weekend I completed Porch Field parkrun. It’s my 60th different parkrun event It’s located in Trim and it is a lovely run. Two laps of the park which features a ruined church, riverside section and sheep including some lambs. Friendly volunteers, of course, as well.

I was almost take to the start due to a racist parking app so I had to sprint to the start line. That apparently left quite a lot of adrenaline in my system and I ended up running 23:30 including stopping to take a selfie. I could have taken it after but that would have meant doing another lap of the course. it also gave me an age group victory, coming 1st out of 5!

Well done Venla who has now completed 50 junior parkruns and earned her ultra wristband. Little Bear is not far from his ultra wristband, either.

Last weekend I reached the anniversary of my movement streak. It’s like a run streak but a bit easier. Walking definitely counts and it is only a kilometre, as long as it is done intentionally.

Now that I have reached a year, I am going to stop.

I’m glad I tried it but I don’t want to keep it going. It became very monotonous. I would work out where I could crowbar it into my day and it wasn’t necessarily quality time. What has helped me get out more is counting my calories, and more recently, a step challenge. Both of these things have encouraged me to get out of the door for longer periods. Whereas with this, I would often just do the minimum. And in heavy rain, it was just unpleasant. So it’s time to move onto the next challenge.

TriLaois is a sprint distance triathlon that takes place in Portlaoise. 750m pool swim, 23km cycle and 5km run. It’s been 20 months since I last did a triathlon and I was super-excited for it.

Still had some stomach issues on the morning but once I was racking my bike in transition it was nothing but excitement. We had nine athletes from the club racing and there are not many greater joys in life than racing with your teammates.

Transition closed at 8:10 and our wave was not scheduled until 10:30. This meant we had the chance to watch some of our teammates in wave one, but then left quite a gap between wave one finishing the swim and us getting in the pool. The bag drop was not secure but it did mean we could keep our hoodies on until the last minute.

The swim

We had a lane to ourselves in wave five. Six people in a lane sounded like a lot but Sarah, Roxane and Grace swam as a pack reducing the number of groups moving around. Melchior was quickest out of the water. I had two bursts of speed where I briefly tried to stay on the girls’ feet but otherwise took it easy.

The cycle

Transition was on an astroturf field which meant our feet got covered in those little rubber balls. I went for socks but otherwise there was no messing around and I was out in two and a half minutes.

The cycle route was an out-and-back and pretty flat. There was tailwind going out and it was slightly downhill which meant coming back was much harder. Even though there was nothing to take me out of my big ring, 3% into a headwind is enough to slow you down. I managed to catch my team mates on the outward leg. I was just under 30 kph average speed.

Annoyingly, neither my heart rate monitor nor my power meter had synced with my bike computer so I had to work on feel. The power meter did sync with my watch, though, and thinks I averagd 189 watts.

The run

Transition two was smooth enough as I switched to my running shoes and set off on the run. I tried not to hurt myself too hard. That’s tough as soon as you see someone ahead of you, though, and it was a constant battle of trying to slow myself down. Thankfully, there was an aid station half way to get some water over my head.

I wrote my tri suit which does not have any pockets so I had to do the run without my phone. As a result, by the half way point, I was two and a half kilometres away from my phone. As someone who doesn’t usually go to the bathroom without my phone, I think that might be a new personal best.

The results

My total time was:

1:30:10

And my splits were:

All good stuff. 2:16 per 100 is good enough swim pace for me, the cycle was faster than expected as I thought about 45 minutes for 20km and the speedy run was a nice bonus, too. Most of all, I had fun, which was the aim of the day.

We took a team of nine of us and everyone did brilliant, especially considering most people were doing their first triathlon.

Well done to Finn Meenagh and Christine O’Brien for being the first DUCCers across the line, and Christopher Lohse for winning his age group. Alas, the competition of the M35-39 age group made for a tough race.

Post race celebrations

After the race, we headed to The Pantry Cafe & Walled Garden for some refreshments and banter.

DUNeS recently hosted a visit from Dogs for the Disabled who are a charity that provide assistance dogs. They are similar to Guide Dogs but help with physical mobility issues like walking, retrieving dropped items, raising the alarm if something is wrong and a range of other tasks.

They also provide therapy dogs which in this case is a well trained dog that acts as a companion (the dog has no additional training in psychodynamic theory).

They are a registered charity and currently fundraising to build a new HQ so if that is a cause you would like to support, check out the Dogs for the Disabled website.

DUHAC held its AGM last week. Congratulations to everyone who made the committee and thank you to those outgoing for all of their hard work. We also got a team photo for Chariots of Tired with Juno helping Jack make a virtual appearance.