Ballbuster 2016 (Boxhill)
Ball-buster, Ball-breaker, Ball-extractor.. the 2016 edition lived up to every name this epic Duathlon has been Christened by participants over the years, as relentless freezing rain battered every athlete for the duration of the event, leading to around 50 DNFs, over 15% of the start list!
The November date for this unique event is somehow always met with torrential conditions, this is the third year in a row I have done the race, and on each occasion my wish for dry conditions has been laughed up by the weather Gods "8 mile run, 24 mile bike and another 8 mile run, 5 ascents of BoxH Hill in total?" I can hear their smug voices say "Let's make it event harder for these idiots by throwing rain, wind & fog at them ALL day...! Hahahahahaha!"
The 8 mile run/24 mile bike/8 mile run all take place on the same 8 mile loop around Box Hill, the finish of each leg being at the car park atop the summit of the world famous 'zig-zag' road. I have some lifetime memories of the place, having visited here with my Mum from the age of seven, so I always love coming back for nostalgic reasons. During Ballbuster, it is very useful to have a reason why you love the place because at times you will absolutely hate it!
Here is a map of that 8 mile route:
It is safe to say that the 8 mile loop is not flat... after a 2km rise from Box Hill car park the road starts descending, gentle for 3 kilometres, but then steeply from 5km to 10km (3-6 miles). However, at 10km you take the left turn up the zig-zag road, and what follows is 2.2 km of ascending a 5-6% slope, up the road the cars take to the summit.
The 2016 event
With an 8am start time, I was up at 5.45, out the door at 6.15, and atop Box Hill by 7am. I have learnt that parking in the car park can mean a 60 minute wait in your car after the event, and so for the last two years I have parked 1.5kms from transition along Box Hill Road (on the course), which means a quick getaway (usually whilst shivering cold!) back to London. After registering in Box Hill Cafe, there wasn't much time for putting stickers on the bike & helmet and affixing the number to my number belt, and it was 7.45am by the time I headed into transition to rack my bike, managing to find a great position with ample room either side. With the heavy rain forecasted, I brought plenty of plastic bags to keep my bike gear and spare clothing dry. Just as athletes were called to the start line, the heavens opened... & it was to rain for the next 5 hours non-stop.
Registration queue (don't forget an umbrella!)
Transition
Bike racked (nutrition on top stem; no need for a full bottle)
To start the event athletes are let off in waves of 5 people every 10 seconds, just to prevent congestion on the course throughout the day, as the roads are open to traffic (athletes have personal timing chips so this does nothing to impact your own time of course). I lined up right near the front, managing to get into the third wave of 5, with an intention of setting off at an easy pace, but upon getting to 1km in 3 mins 45 and seeing the course record holder (and 2:21 marathon runner) Andy Greenleaf just 150 metres ahead of me I realised I may have started a bit too aggressively... so until the 5km point I kept the foot off the pedal, but once the gradient hit the sharp descent (at 5km) I felt it was time to open the legs a little. Kilometres 5-10 were done at a brisk pace, getting me to the base of the first ascent of Box Hill and 10kms in under 40 minutes. Focusing on pumping the arms up the hill, I got to the cafe in exactly the same time as my 2015 split, 52:30, however for this year the entry to T1 was around the far side of the car park, meaning an extra 2.5 minutes of running. My official first run split was 54:52.
Click here to see the Strava details for the first 8 mile run: Ballbuster 2016 RUN 1
I had run in my tri suit, compression top, arm warmers and running gloves. For T1 I had decided on putting on my Rapha light waterproof, and shoes with winter bootie covers, as well as another pair of gloves. In hindsight I wish I had put on another top layer.. as throughout the 1:24:40 3 lap bike course I got colder and colder.. On lap three I started to see some riders in severe trouble with the cold, and after the race I heard of several that had reached a hyperthermic stage.. this was the reason for the fifty or so DNFs, one of those being course record holder Andy Greenleaf (whose body temperature had dropped to 33 degrees I hear).
The bike leg involved very tentative handling on the downhill sections and sharp turns (almost to a standstill) and a 'grinding out' of the 3 ascents of Box Hill, without going too much into the 'red', as the final 8 mile run is where your legs need to have some juice left in them. For next year I will certainly use my road bike (with TT clip-ons), I wanted to this year but she was getting a facelift with the 'Carbon Repair Company' after a some minor damage several weeks ago... I had hoped it would be ready in time, buy sods law means it will be ready for pick up on Monday (two days after the race). On the downhill sections I was able to power past those on road bikes, but they all clawed back past me on the climb, and the ascent of Box Hill is where the real time can be made up on this course, especially when the weather is this bad. I felt dreadful on the first lap, but fortunately had the sense of mind to eat the energy bar & cliff shot gels I had taped to my bike top stem, and I drank the whole of my caffeine infused water bottle, which meant I was feeling significantly better on the second bike lap, and better still for the final third lap. My Strava data showed me ascending the 2.2km climb around the 8:30 mark, sensible enough to keep something in the tank for the final run, but on a road bike I believe the same effort would put those times nearer 7.45-30. On arriving back at transition I heard a marshall shouting out "your helmet is still on!" to a clearly disorientated runner leaving transition, and despite scoffing and laughing at this guy, two minutes later I did exactly the same thing! This meant a 100m return back into transition to deposit it with the rest of my equipment. For the run I decided to remove my top layer plus one pair of gloves.
(The Human Race Twitter feed post race captured a great shot of me at the very top of Box Hill, sodden to the core)
Click here for the strava link for the 3 loop bike: BIKE
The start of the run was horrible... it took me a full 4km before I could feel either of my legs below the knees, and so the best I could do was trundle along at a slow pace until my body was able to find some sort of a rhythm. Fortunately this happened just as the steep descending began, which meant I was able to run a few KMs under 4:00 pace as my legs warmed up, getting to the base of Box Hill without being overtaken, whilst also picking off several runners myself. For the final, verge-of-cramp-feeling-like-you-are-running-on-the-spot ascent I had a couple of runners just behind me, so instead of being able to cruise over the line I had to dig deep to ensure there was no unexpected attacks from behind in the final few hundred metres, crossing the line with a second run split (slightly shorter than the first one) of 55:35, and a total time of 3:18:43 for 34th overall, & 10th in my age-group. Despite being 7 minutes slower than last year I was pretty pleased with the result, firstly due to lots of missed training in the last several weeks (a bad back for 4 of those, a sore calf before that, and for 2 weeks plus and a nasty bout of gastroenteritis), secondly, because the new approach into transition after the first run added 2 minutes to the overall time, and thirdly because of those biblical conditions!
Strava link for RUN 2
In terms of lessons learnt from 2016: i) overshoes were critical on the bike - i am guessing none of the DNFs had them on, ii) nutrition on lap 1 of the bike leg was vital, iii) a road bike with aero clip-ons and deep rim is deemed the best set up, iv) I opted for a non-aero helmet (because of the conditions and the potential for a steamed-up visor) but should have worn a hat/cap underneath for warmth and additional shelter from the rain.
Once again, I am sure i will be back next year praying for decent weather and chance at posting a finish time I can be proud of!
Ball-buster, Ball-breaker, Ball-extractor.. the 2016 edition lived up to every name this epic Duathlon has been Christened by participants over the years, as relentless freezing rain battered every athlete for the duration of the event, leading to around 50 DNFs, over 15% of the start list!
The November date for this unique event is somehow always met with torrential conditions, this is the third year in a row I have done the race, and on each occasion my wish for dry conditions has been laughed up by the weather Gods "8 mile run, 24 mile bike and another 8 mile run, 5 ascents of BoxH Hill in total?" I can hear their smug voices say "Let's make it event harder for these idiots by throwing rain, wind & fog at them ALL day...! Hahahahahaha!"
The 8 mile run/24 mile bike/8 mile run all take place on the same 8 mile loop around Box Hill, the finish of each leg being at the car park atop the summit of the world famous 'zig-zag' road. I have some lifetime memories of the place, having visited here with my Mum from the age of seven, so I always love coming back for nostalgic reasons. During Ballbuster, it is very useful to have a reason why you love the place because at times you will absolutely hate it!
Here is a map of that 8 mile route:
It is safe to say that the 8 mile loop is not flat... after a 2km rise from Box Hill car park the road starts descending, gentle for 3 kilometres, but then steeply from 5km to 10km (3-6 miles). However, at 10km you take the left turn up the zig-zag road, and what follows is 2.2 km of ascending a 5-6% slope, up the road the cars take to the summit.
The 2016 event
With an 8am start time, I was up at 5.45, out the door at 6.15, and atop Box Hill by 7am. I have learnt that parking in the car park can mean a 60 minute wait in your car after the event, and so for the last two years I have parked 1.5kms from transition along Box Hill Road (on the course), which means a quick getaway (usually whilst shivering cold!) back to London. After registering in Box Hill Cafe, there wasn't much time for putting stickers on the bike & helmet and affixing the number to my number belt, and it was 7.45am by the time I headed into transition to rack my bike, managing to find a great position with ample room either side. With the heavy rain forecasted, I brought plenty of plastic bags to keep my bike gear and spare clothing dry. Just as athletes were called to the start line, the heavens opened... & it was to rain for the next 5 hours non-stop.
Registration queue (don't forget an umbrella!)
To start the event athletes are let off in waves of 5 people every 10 seconds, just to prevent congestion on the course throughout the day, as the roads are open to traffic (athletes have personal timing chips so this does nothing to impact your own time of course). I lined up right near the front, managing to get into the third wave of 5, with an intention of setting off at an easy pace, but upon getting to 1km in 3 mins 45 and seeing the course record holder (and 2:21 marathon runner) Andy Greenleaf just 150 metres ahead of me I realised I may have started a bit too aggressively... so until the 5km point I kept the foot off the pedal, but once the gradient hit the sharp descent (at 5km) I felt it was time to open the legs a little. Kilometres 5-10 were done at a brisk pace, getting me to the base of the first ascent of Box Hill and 10kms in under 40 minutes. Focusing on pumping the arms up the hill, I got to the cafe in exactly the same time as my 2015 split, 52:30, however for this year the entry to T1 was around the far side of the car park, meaning an extra 2.5 minutes of running. My official first run split was 54:52.
Click here to see the Strava details for the first 8 mile run: Ballbuster 2016 RUN 1
I had run in my tri suit, compression top, arm warmers and running gloves. For T1 I had decided on putting on my Rapha light waterproof, and shoes with winter bootie covers, as well as another pair of gloves. In hindsight I wish I had put on another top layer.. as throughout the 1:24:40 3 lap bike course I got colder and colder.. On lap three I started to see some riders in severe trouble with the cold, and after the race I heard of several that had reached a hyperthermic stage.. this was the reason for the fifty or so DNFs, one of those being course record holder Andy Greenleaf (whose body temperature had dropped to 33 degrees I hear).
The bike leg involved very tentative handling on the downhill sections and sharp turns (almost to a standstill) and a 'grinding out' of the 3 ascents of Box Hill, without going too much into the 'red', as the final 8 mile run is where your legs need to have some juice left in them. For next year I will certainly use my road bike (with TT clip-ons), I wanted to this year but she was getting a facelift with the 'Carbon Repair Company' after a some minor damage several weeks ago... I had hoped it would be ready in time, buy sods law means it will be ready for pick up on Monday (two days after the race). On the downhill sections I was able to power past those on road bikes, but they all clawed back past me on the climb, and the ascent of Box Hill is where the real time can be made up on this course, especially when the weather is this bad. I felt dreadful on the first lap, but fortunately had the sense of mind to eat the energy bar & cliff shot gels I had taped to my bike top stem, and I drank the whole of my caffeine infused water bottle, which meant I was feeling significantly better on the second bike lap, and better still for the final third lap. My Strava data showed me ascending the 2.2km climb around the 8:30 mark, sensible enough to keep something in the tank for the final run, but on a road bike I believe the same effort would put those times nearer 7.45-30. On arriving back at transition I heard a marshall shouting out "your helmet is still on!" to a clearly disorientated runner leaving transition, and despite scoffing and laughing at this guy, two minutes later I did exactly the same thing! This meant a 100m return back into transition to deposit it with the rest of my equipment. For the run I decided to remove my top layer plus one pair of gloves.
(The Human Race Twitter feed post race captured a great shot of me at the very top of Box Hill, sodden to the core)
Click here for the strava link for the 3 loop bike: BIKE
The start of the run was horrible... it took me a full 4km before I could feel either of my legs below the knees, and so the best I could do was trundle along at a slow pace until my body was able to find some sort of a rhythm. Fortunately this happened just as the steep descending began, which meant I was able to run a few KMs under 4:00 pace as my legs warmed up, getting to the base of Box Hill without being overtaken, whilst also picking off several runners myself. For the final, verge-of-cramp-feeling-like-you-are-running-on-the-spot ascent I had a couple of runners just behind me, so instead of being able to cruise over the line I had to dig deep to ensure there was no unexpected attacks from behind in the final few hundred metres, crossing the line with a second run split (slightly shorter than the first one) of 55:35, and a total time of 3:18:43 for 34th overall, & 10th in my age-group. Despite being 7 minutes slower than last year I was pretty pleased with the result, firstly due to lots of missed training in the last several weeks (a bad back for 4 of those, a sore calf before that, and for 2 weeks plus and a nasty bout of gastroenteritis), secondly, because the new approach into transition after the first run added 2 minutes to the overall time, and thirdly because of those biblical conditions!
Strava link for RUN 2
In terms of lessons learnt from 2016: i) overshoes were critical on the bike - i am guessing none of the DNFs had them on, ii) nutrition on lap 1 of the bike leg was vital, iii) a road bike with aero clip-ons and deep rim is deemed the best set up, iv) I opted for a non-aero helmet (because of the conditions and the potential for a steamed-up visor) but should have worn a hat/cap underneath for warmth and additional shelter from the rain.
Once again, I am sure i will be back next year praying for decent weather and chance at posting a finish time I can be proud of!
