The start of a weekend of racing

I woke up early on Saturday morning but not with the usual pre-race nerves. This time I was on the other side of the barrier tape. For the past few months, I've been chief organiser (and panicker) for the Fusion mega mini triathlon and also the Scottish junior tri champs.

Over 170 competitors over 8 different races in one day. The Mega Mini tri was all about getting new people into the sport. I know how daunting triathlon can seem so this was a super-short race for people of all ages and abilities. A few weeks ago, not many people had entered (queue for a bit of uber-encouragement for anyone I met -it'll be fun, you know you want to, I'll lend you a bike and promise you don't have to run about a park in a bikini). By race day, we had 51 adults on the line. Some on flashy tri bikes they'd borrowed from friends and partners, some on rusty mountain bikes. Everyone with smiles, what a great race.

And as for the junior champs. I am still in awe of the tiny kid (was he really 9 years old?) who ran through transition looking like a mini pro-racer. All the kids were great and I had a fantastic vantage point from the top of the hill. Marshalling at the 'dodgy' corner I was very conscious of the fact the St Andrews ambulance people hadn't turned up for the adult race. Technically, I could be first aider but not also the organiser and also the marshall for the corner where the marshall hadn't turned up. So many little things you just don't realise as a racer. The 30min leading up to the race were pretty manic and I was so grateful to have so many helpers looking after the run, bike and swim courses. Triathlon is a VERY complicated race to organise. Transition racks, timing chips, goody bags, race numbers, swim heats and caps... But we did it. And, finally, now I'm no longer so tired, I can realise we did a great job and everyone had a fantastic day. I'm sure some of the kids will be making an appearance in future commonwealth games or olympics and it was wonderful to see them in action.