European Championships

Yesterday the European Championships were conducted in atrocious conditions (rain, 11 degrees) in the beautiful surrounds of Holyrood Park in Edinburgh, Scotland.

After a solid first run with the main pack I entered transition in 4th place and was well positioned for a good race. Unfortunately, I started slipping on the corners at the end of the first lap and by the mid point of the second lap realised it was caused by a puncture. Very dissapointing and an unfortunate finish to a race which gave me an strong opportunity to move to the top of the world rankings. After the first three rounds I sit in 8th place:
http://www.triathlon.org/docs/rankings-duathlon-men.pdf?ts=1182095204 

We have now scheduled a 10 day holiday in Italy/Greece to recharge the batteries and relax on the beach. The first half of the season has been great, my running in particular is now consistently under 31 minutes and the second half of the season will offer new challenges with increased bike emphasis and non drafting racing. The break though is especially necessary after the disappointment of this one.

Cheers
Raf