Cader Idris Fell 2010

A real peach of a race, a definite on the calender this year and a race which i was hoping to knock a fair few minutes off last years time of 1h 55m. Arrived with Daf and James how were competing for the first time and a quick glance around the car park soon got the heart racing and kick start the adrenaline tank. Had 1 running session in 6 weeks prior to the race as i had broken a rib whilst playing football AGAIN. Running and football are just not meant to be. I had no idea how topace myself in the race and thought just keep a top 20 pace and hang on. Did ok until Ty nant where the climbing began and really felt the legs empty. Luckly i didnt loose that many positions with a quick walk and reached the top on Butch's heels. Followed each other down to the ridge where the calfs cramped up when hitting the flat and had to stop to stretch and fuel up on a Gel. Had a blast down to Ty nant then a steady run down to the finish picking off the 2nd lady on the last stretch. Finished 26th overall, 1h 46min, 10 min quicker than last year. Butch finished 1h 44 and daf was 7 seconds behind me on his first ever run up a mountain let alone a Fell race, HERO!
Hopefully injury free and a few races before Snowdon will see me with a top 30. Foel Fras next weekend.

Corndon 3 Peaks Classic

5th of April 2010
First round of the Welsh Open/ North and South Fell running championship. Really excited to have finally caught a first round of the champ;s and hopefully put some scores on the board. Bank holiday Monday race i brought the family for a day out. A tough last few weeks having had a knock on the knee which resulted in swelling and crutches held back my training but felt fit nonetheless. A Dramatic start straight up to the peak of corndon hill holding 4th place but losing positions on the downhill sections. A superb route up the last 2 peaks and then a flyer down to the finish where i managed to gain a place with a surprising boost of pace. Finished in 9th 8Min's down on the leader. Brillaint start lets just get the training going.

Cardigan Valantines 10k

Race 1 of the 2010 season, a good xmas paid off and sealed a convincing 2nd place. Stopping off in cardigan after picking up a sofa from my sister i decided to bring the trainers just incase. Following the back roads of cardigan a smooth undulating 1 lap race really tested my early season form. Clear in 2nd after 3 miles, a steady run to the end produced a fast time of 39.45m Job done. (Only 5 min behind the leader, ouch).

Aberystwyth 10K 2009

13th December 09 Aberystwyth 10k 37.37 14th.
Superb weather for the event which had attracted a whole host of runners to the town. My aim was to beat last years time, but i knew it would be tough because my running had been limited to short runs due to more niggling injuries. I started off at a quick pace and settled behind my pacemaker and sat on his heels until half way mark. At this point i started to slow myself as i was pushing pretty hard, lost a few positions at the 3/4 mark but consolidated on the run home to finish 14th. Very happy with the time but definitely room for improvement. into the 35's next year. Watch this space!

Sosban 10mile MT 22.11.09
My 2nd attempt at this race and for the 1000th event this year i dragged Tina along for the ride, even an 8 hour wales v Argentina squash session couldn't stop her. The weather had been horrendous all week with extreme levels of flooding and wind. A nice feeling approaching a race where you are aware of the settings and the course, makes a difference to preparations. The race was started by Ray Gravell's wife and off we went. My aim was to beat last years time, which shouldn't have been to hard considering i played extra time footy 32 hours prior to the event in 08. The course begins with 1.5 miles on tarmac with a brief spell on grass, I tried to keep a top 20 position but was struggling to hold onto the heels of the runners in front. The twisty forest single track was great fun with many up and down twisty tracks. Worst moment was the 5mile mark where we approached a 100m up hill dash on sand, a real tester. Between 5-6 miles the calf's began to tighten and really held me back, lack of training and dehydration once again at fault, I lost places at every mark and was holding out for a finish. The 1mile beach run was not called for, leaning at an angle because of the strong wind and the sporadic soft sand which caught you out when you found a rhythm. Got passed by the 1st lady at this point which I couldn't believe, Tried to keep up but the legs were not going any faster. A flowing tree run to the finish I kept my position and held onto #40. Testing day out, but could have been a lot worse if the rain had caught us. Dry and windy day.

Time - 69m 8sec DYLAN LEWIS CERIST TRI M 27 ms

Aberystwyth Twin Peaks 2009

11th October 2009 -

50m.33sec
6th Overall

My first local event of the year and was really up for it after a few months of solid training. The course passing my work helped as I was able to recce the course in the nights, which made a huge difference to my pre race confidence. The day started off wet and misty and the twin peaks weren't even visible when i arrived at the start line. A full field of 100 included an Olympic athlete and all the local runners from Aber athletics and UWA. When the race started off at 1.00pm the skies were clear and perfect running conditions saw the field stretch out towards the marina before climbing the first peak Pen dinas. Kept up with the front pack until we reached pendinas were the front 3 took away but I managed to keep myself close to bro dysynni until we peaked and my slow down hill running cost me a place to our local butcher, James. Managed to keep up with him until the marina where the legs were screaming for a slower pace, slowed down along the prom were I was comfortably settled in 6th. Crossed the cheer leaders and start line and approached constitution hill. Arrived at the top of the 2nd peak well and truly finished, took 5 paces of walking to get me back into my stride and finished with a canter to 6th place. As I was running alone from pendinas onwards, my pace was not tested to the full, and definitely a few seconds to be gained next year. Very enjoyable day.

Bala Standard Triathlon 09

13th September 2009.......
My first standard triathlon this time in 2008. I've put in some decent training leading up to the event but for the running were the "runners knee" was threatening again. Arrived at Bala 8.00am with 870 others, and the numbers showed, the transition and registration arrears was a busy area. Nice goody bag and the towel which I'll be showing off at the local pool. Cwrdd a bois clwb Cerist, Owain bedwyr, Rich and Pete. Rich was the boi to beat as Daf was not competing this year, (Coldplay gig). Rich had beaten me in Harlech Tri by 5 seconds so the pressure was on for the first Cerist member home. I set up the kit with my Nike Free trainers for the run. I finally decided to sort out my running leg of the tri with some new trainers, finishing the hardest leg can be very demoralising with cuts and bloody socks. After testing the free's bare foot they were perfect for sock less running.
We entered the water 30m late after a low lying mist, which was stunning in the morning sun. Vaseline up and off we went for the swim, lake not as cold as expected, and no sign of the blue Algae which was warned on the news. Got into my stroke and kept a solid pace, then the goggles started steaming up, mainly because of the warm sun. Couldn't see much only the splash ahead, so followed best I could, definitely cost me time. Came out of the water 28.55m (315th) which was 6min faster than last year, progress. Felt little shaky running into transition, bike shoes, helmet, number then pushed the bike out, clipped in and off we went. Bike was superb going out, really fast and only had 2-3 pass me which was encouraging. On the way back there was a headwind which was not expected, really nasty up the climbs were I lost a bit of time. Kept with a bunch all the way back to Bala and recorded a time of 1h 7m 08sec (304th). Seriously could have gone 1-2 min faster as I was not tired at all putting the shoes on. Once I started running I knew I would enjoy it, legs felt good and knee was painless. Kept a solid but comfortable pace and completed the 10.2k run in 41min 27min (129th). Finished with a little push with a big grin, definitely enjoyed it to much and could have pushed much harder. Next year look out!! Beat Rich by 1min really because he had a poor transition, the long legs holding him back. But the biggest surprise was Pete (MV) who beat me by 4 min... Ouch. Superb day, weather warm but not scorching and faultless organisation. Best Tri yet