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Of the new bike releases, 220 was excited to hear of the Parlee TTR tri bike, the world’s first to have disc brakes and through-axles. We’ll be getting an exclusive run-through of the bike’s engineering process from the bike’s creator Bob Parlee in the coming days.  

The new Parlee TTR with disc brakes

Other big bike news includes the new lineup of Scott Foil aero road bikes, with the Foil Premium at the top of the line complete with the new Dura-Ace electronic groupset. Austrian bike brand Simplon had their MR.T 2 tri bike on display, and tell us they will be available through a UK distributor in 2017. 

Away from the bikes, Louis Garneau have made changes to their flagship course tri suit for 2017, with improved fabrics and compression in the legs and a colour change from black/green to black/red. There is also subtle changes to their X-Lite tri shoes (which won 220’s tri shoe grouptest this year) with improved power transfer in the sole. Santini were showing their new 2017 sleeved aero tri suit, and Gore, more renowned for their high-end bike-specific gear, are bringing out tri suits for 2017. the women’s suit (below) has a zipper around the hip line for toilet stops, which will be welcome news for many triathletes! 

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We’ll be bringing you all the latest gear and tech news this week from Eurobike – look out for our Eurobike feature in issue 331 of 220 Triathlon, on sale in October

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Forced out of a professional football career and into depression by injury, Luke Tyburski discovered his salvation in the world of extreme endurance sport.

The Ultimate Triathlon is his own creation: an insane 2,000km solo swim, bike and run from Morocco to Monaco, all in just 12 days. Experienced athletes said it couldn’t be done, Luke believed otherwise…

On the night, Luke will also be hosting a Q&A with the audience.

Date: Wednesday 5th October 

Where: Cube Cinema, Bristol, BS2 8JD

Time: 7pm

Here’s a trailer for the film…

The Ultimate Triathlon Official Trailer from fizzeek media on Vimeo.

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Tickets are available here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-ultimate-triathlon-documentary-tickets-27373313317

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Canyon have at long last announced the release of the Speedmax CF this week, a more accessible (and more affordable) version of the Speedmax CF SLX rode to glory by Jan Frodeno at Challenge Roth earlier this summer. 

Marketing manager Nick Allen tells us the bike will be available at numerous price points, starting at €2300 specced with Mavic wheels and Shimano 105 groupset – though still a big investment for some it means a bike proven to be one of the world’s fastest will be accessible to the mass-market, with the direct-mount rear brake as opposed to integrated on the SLX version costing just 0.6 watts per hour according to Allen.
You can read a more in-depth first look of the Speedmax CF here, courtesy of our sister title BikeRadar. 

Boutique American bike brand Parlee are renowned for their customisation, so it’s little surprise that their new TTR tri bike was on show in three completely different colour schemes at Eurobike. Marketing manager Tom Rodi told us Parlee usually take on one big project every year, and this time around the TTR is the outcome. The first triathlon bike with disc brakes and through-axles, it aims to bring much improved braking to the tri market without the losses in aerodynamics, and a removable carbon fairing has been added at the front and back to reduce drag.  

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The version of the TTR on show above was equipped with Sram Red Etap shifters and Hed wheels, and the bike is listed at 5999 euros minus both of these – innovation clearly comes at a cost, though the TTR is an exciting proposition. 

Reynolds Cycling have unveiled their new lineup of tri-orientated wheels, having completely overhauled their Aero range. They will now just come in 46, 65 and 80mm depths, are tubeless ready and are optimised to achieve lower drag than previous versions. The branding is also more subtle, with a sleek blacked-out finish.

Endura have been busy creating new cycle-specific lines for 2017, and have made some limited edition jerseys in fun prints that will be available in early 2017. You’ll have to be quick as we’re told it’s going to be in very limited runs!

Endura’s new cycling speedsuit is potentially a big game changer, as the arms are clad with silicon rather than the ribbed strips seen on previous versions and on the Drag2Zero tri suit. We will wait with anticipation to see if Endura role the tech out onto their tri suits in the future…

We’re bringing you all the latest tri gear and tech news this week from Eurobike – look out for our Eurobike feature in issue 331 of 220 Triathlon, on sale in October

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With a working title of ‘Smartbike’, the system can connect numerous sensors to the rider to give a huge amount of information about position.

The data can be downloaded and your optimal aerodynamic position on the bike determined: this can then be used to actually fine-tune your position while riding to make it the most aerodynamic, in effect replicating wind tunnel data in real-time. Though developer Marc Graveline says this in no way negates the importance of bike fit (more so that Smartbike is designed to be an extension of a bike fit to further fine-tune your own body’s position on the bike) it does mean that data you could only gather in a wind tunnel can be accessible to the public. Smartbike can also calculate other metrics not relating to aerodynamics, including heart rate variability, lactic acid build-up and body temperature. 

Graveline told us there is no release date as of yet, but the price will most likely be akin to a high-end power meter. When it does hit the market Argon 18 are exploring options to sell it as a stand-alone product as well as integrated specifically into Argon 18’s bikes. 

Elsewhere, 220 noticed a trend for brands building do-it-all bikes for road and tri – two notable examples were the Kuota KT3 and the Bergamont Prime RS Tri. The Kuota KT3 bike on display had just drop bars attached, but the frame is TT-like in its geometry. Kuota tell us it’s their ultimate solution for a do-it-all aero road and tri bike, and you simply need to attach an aero rig to make it as capable as a dedicated tri bike. 

The Bergamont Prime RS, however, comes with clip-on bars already attached, and while not having such an aero geometry is fully ready to go with no extras needed. The bike will retail for 3999 Euros, and we’re told the brand, who are massive on the continent, are exploring the idea of expanding their UK operations.

Tucked away on a smaller marquee at Eurobike was fledgling British brand Flaer, who have developed a patented self-lubricating chain system. 

The logic is that during a ride, your chain’s lubricant will start to have less effect than during the first hour of riding and power is lost from the extra friction – this is where Flaer’s chain system comes in, as the specially designed lubricant is pumped out in micro-doses via a vessel attached to your driveside (in a similar place to where a cadence sensor would go). To clean your chain after you simply rinse with water, as the formula is light and doesn’t stick. 

Flaer tell us the system is set to retail at £250, with the rolling cost being the lubricant itself that will be a similar price to others on the market. The brand are in discussion with bike manufacturers to potentially have it integrated onto bikes at point-of-sale, and we think the product could have an interesting future off the back of its potential to save power by improving the workings of your chain while you ride.   

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We’re bringing you all the latest tri gear and tech news this week from Eurobike – look out for our Eurobike feature in issue 331 of 220 Triathlon, on sale in October

This marks the culmination of a year of qualifying races that included the new British race, the ÖtillÖ Swimrun Isles of Scilly in June (see report here). Teams of two will swim and run a total of 75km as they traverse the 26 islands from Sandhamn to Utö, a race which breaks down into 10km of cold, rough sea swimming in the Baltic and 65km of tough trails, slippery rocks and rocky terrain (see our beginners’ guide to swimrun here).

Triathletes Racing

The event will include some notable names from the world of multisport, including Scottish triathlete, Ironman UK 2010 winner and three-time Ironman 70.3 winner Fraser Cartmell. He joins ultra-runner Andrew Fargus, who won the Scilly ÖtillÖ race with former pro triathlete Richard Stannard, who is unable to compete in Sweden this time. In total, 12 teams this year will include British athletes.

Another recognisable tri name competing this year is Faris Al Sultan, professional triathlete and 2005 Kona winner, who races with Werner Leitner.

Image: Jakob Edholm

Ones To Watch

Some previous winners and record holders will be heading to the championship race this weekend with titles to defend. Look out for Daniel Hansson and Lelle Moberg who hold the course record (2014) of 8 hours 16 mins. Also competing in the men’s teams are reigning world champs Paul Krochak and Oscar Olsson.

In the mixed race 2015 winners Staffan Björklund and Marika Wagner will be back to see if they can match or better their fifth-overall place of last year. Plus in the women’s teams, reigning world champs Annika Eriksson and Maja Tesch will compete in separate teams, with Kristin Larsson and Bibben Nordblom respectively,

The race will be streamed live online at http://otilloswimrun.com/live from 04:45 UK time. The 220 Triathlon team will also be following the race and posting live updates on Twitter (@220Triathlon) throughout, plus check back here for race reports and interviews.

ÖtillÖ Final 15

Also taking place this weekend is the new ÖtillÖ Final 15 race. Held on Saturday 3rd September, this gives swimrun teams the chance to experience the last stages of the Grand Final course in a shorter race and is one of a series of ‘sprint’ events launched by ÖtillÖ to introduce more athletes to the sport of swimrun.

In total, Final 15 athletes will race just over 2km of swimming and 14km of running, taking in a slightly modified route to the grand final finish line in Üto. Competing for 220 Triathlon is Editor Helen Webster (@Helen_Webster on Twitter) who joins a media team. Helen also competed earlier in the year in the ÖtillÖ swimrun isles of Scilly race with Swedish multi-time ÖtillÖ world champs finisher Göran Wernqvist (read her race blog here).

The Final 15 will also be streamed live at http://otilloswimrun.com/live, starting at 11:15am UK time on Saturday 3rd September.

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Interested in trying swimrun? Read our beginners’ guide to swimrun here and our feature on swimrun gear here.

This will be Brownlee’s first race since winning the gold in Rio, as well as his first time competing in the Beijing International Triathlon. He placed 12th in his first Olympics in Beijing 2008, then returned to Beijing in 2011 to win his second ITU world title. Brownlee is also a two-time ITU World Champion (2009 and 2011); three-time European Champion (2010, 2011 and 2014); and current Commonwealth Champion.

“I’m looking forward to racing at Beijing International Triathlon and the challenge of the non-drafting format,” said Brownlee. “I think it’ll be a tough race against a quality field, especially as I don’t usually race the non-drafting format. I have always enjoyed racing in China and have fond memories from my two previous visits.”

In the non-drafting Olympic-distance (1.5km swim/40km bike/10km run) event, Brownlee will lead an elite field of professional triathletes including fellow Olympians Joe Maloy, Ashleigh Gentle, Vicente Hernandez and Barbara Riveros in the women’s race. Lining up against Brownlee will be regular Beijing entrant Greg Bennett and rising US non-drafting talent Cam Dye.

The Beijing International Triathlon will also be a return to China for Riveros who just captured fifth for Chile at the Rio Olympics, and also raced in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Professional triathletes participating in the 2016 Beijing International Triathlon include:

Men:

Josh Amberger (Australia)

Greg Bennett (Australia)

Alistair Brownlee (Great Britain) – 1st in Rio

Kevin Collington (United States of America)

Cameron Dye (United States of America)

Eric Lagerstrom (United States of America)

Joe Maloy (United States of America) – 23rd in Rio

Vicente Hernandez (Spain) – 27th in Rio

Women:

Ashleigh Gentle (Australia) – 26th in Rio

Lauren Goss (United States of America)

Holly Lawrence (Great Britain)

Barbara Riveros (Chile) – 5th in Rio

Magali Tisseyre (Canada)

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Radka Vodickova (Czech Republic)

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So, heading to the start of the inaugural ÖtillÖ Final 15 race in Stockholm on 3rd September I’m facing a series of emotions. Having already raced the new ÖtillÖ Swimrun Isles of Scilly earlier in the year (report here), people seem to have me down as some kind of swimrun veteran. But if I’m being completely honest, the day we’re facing in the Stockholm archipelago has me more than a little spooked…

So what is it? Well, in essence the Final 15 is exactly as it sounds. Forming part of the new ÖtillÖ Sprint race series, it offers a shorter version of an existing ‘full’ race. Only in this case, the full race in question is the mythical ÖtillÖ world championship final, renowned for being one of the world’s toughest endurance races, in which athletes traverse 75km of brutal trails, slippery rocks and current-strewn swims in the freezing Baltic.

“It’s one of the most beautiful parts of the course,” says founder Michael Lemmel during the race briefing on the ferry to the start line, “but our racers are a bit foggy by the time they reach it…. So this is a new way to experience the finish.”

Let’s be clear what we’re talking about here, though. The race is called the ‘Final 15’ when in reality it’s nearer 17km (and my Garmin finally reveals our race to be more like 18km!) and within that there are nine runs across often tricky, technical trails and eight swims, including strong currents at times, the longest of which is 900m.

Lemmel is right though – already from the ferry we can see just how beautiful the scenery in the area is, with dense woods sitting on rocky outcrops, while the air feels clean and fresh in a way that makes you desperate to get outside and take in the environment.

A Unique Experience

The Final 15 ÖtillÖ Sprint also gives you a chance to experience something that very few athletes will be lucky enough to go through. The full championship race follows two days later and only 120 teams of two are lucky enough to qualify to take on the full 75km course, with another 600 (ouch) registered on the wait list. So if ÖtillÖ is on your bucket list but you can’t contemplate the full distance, or never managed to qualify, this is a good alternative.

I’m racing with Laurent Grabet, a fellow journo from Switzerland, who I meet the night before. He’s never raced swimrun before, but with plenty of trail experience and a faster swim ability than me, we decide to go for it and try racing tethered with belts and ropes, with hand paddes for Laurent in the swim.

Many of the water exits were straight on to slippery, steep rocks. Image: Jakob Edholm

The first run is only 1400m, so we’re soon arriving at the first – and longest – swim. I’d been nervous about water temperatures after really struggling in the Scilly race, but in fact either a summer of hanging around in lakes trying to toughen up has worked or things are much warmer here, as the water feels comfortable to swim in.

Laurent and I soon get into a rhythm and we’re keeping up well with the field. I get the odd paddle in the face but I’m loving the beautiful surroundings – and bizarrely, am enjoying spotting the many jellyfish swimming beneath me. Not everyone reported liking them so much!

Swim done and we’re into the longest of the runs, at 7400m. Most of this one is remarkably flat and easy-going for ÖtillÖ though, with the first 5k taking us down wide country trail roads. It starts to pelt it down with rain, but actually we don’t mind as it’s refreshing and means we don’t have to bother ‘cabbing down’ (swimrun speak for peeling off the top of the wetsuit to avoid overheating).

Technical Terrain

From here on though, the terrain soon starts to become more technical. I’m more used to flat runs and am also conscious of a recent Achilles injury that is still a little creaky. Laurent pushes the pace though and I’m surprised to find I (mostly) fall into step with him – although there are a couple of moments I fall flat on my face…

Distances from here are much shorter between swim and run legs, so we’re constantly in and out of the water. We seem to have transitions pretty nailed though – apart from one memorable swim where I forget to do up the front zip on my wetsuit and it promptly filled with water on each stroke. Not a mistake you make twice.

Runs varied from technical trails to swampy undergrowth. Image: Jakob Edholm

One thing I am finding tricky though is the water exits. Many are on to steep and slippery rocks and I just can’t get a foothold. Swimrun is a friendly sport though and I find other swimrunners behind me only too happy to give my bum a good shove to help me out!

As well as trying to keep to a decent pace, we’re trying to take in the scenery as well though. There can’t be anything else in the world like this race – we run through beautiful forests, along magical, almost fairytale, trails and scamper across barren rocks feeling like the last people on earth.

With no cut-offs in the Sprints, there’s plenty of time to enjoy them! Image: Jakob Edholm

All too soon we reach the final island – Utö – where the course slightly alters from the world championship course to allow us to take in a final beautiful trail and a couple of short extra swims, before we head up the final hill to the finish line where race organiser Michael Lemmel is there again to greet finishers with a hug – along with a welcome finish line buffet! Our finish time? Three hours and five seconds…. We joke that if I hadn’t spectacularly fallen off the rocks back into the sea during one swim exit we’d have come in under three!

220’s Editor Helen and race partner Laurent at the finish. Image: Magnus Ormestad

There’s no doubting that this is a tough race. Don’t be fooled by the ‘Sprint’ name – you’ll need to be in reasonable shape to attempt it and you’ll meet some tricky trails and rough currents along the way. But most regular triathletes should be more than up to the challenge and it’s also a fantastic way to experience the things that truly make swimrun unique. Plus having the opportunity to try out the same course as the world champs racers – but without having to get in shape for 75km – is a truly wonderful experience.

Race done and I’m tired but by no means exhausted and I’m soon wondering what it would take to manage the full distance some day. That’s the other thing with the new Sprint distances. They hook you in. Enter one and prepare to be converted…

Find out more about the ÖtillÖ full and sprint distance race series here.

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Interested in trying swimrun? Read our beginners’ guide to swimrun here and our feature on swimrun gear here.

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Base layers, arm warmers and even wooly gloves in Brit Lucy Hall’s case were the order of the day, as athlete’s battled air temperatures of just 8°c. The water wasn’t as cold as expected at 17°c, but still athletes who were expected to be high up the field struggled to get any leeway. Even so, British super-swimmer Jessica Learmonth was first out of the water as expected in 9mins flat, with Hall close behind and series leader Flora Duffy (BER) also up there. 

The bike quickly split into two packs, with the American trio of Katy Zaferes, Sarah True and Summer Cook all in there. Flora Duffy took an early lead, but was reeled in by the Americans who controlled the 20km four-lap ride. Non Stanford and Vicky Holland, third and fourth in the Olympics, were in the chase pack and were around 30secs down for most of the ride.  

Kirsten Kasper of the USA was first to break on the run, and was quickly joined by Flora Duffy (BER) and Sarah True (USA). Holland and Zaferes managed to bridge some gap on the first lap of the run, and were roughly 7secs back.

That didn’t last long, as True widened the gap and surprisingly the only athlete closing in was fellow American Summer Cook. Despite having a terrible T2, Cook blasted through the pack and finally approached True with 500m to go – as she sprinted past clad in a full compression skinsuit to keep the warmth in, the choice of clothing clearly paid off as she held form and sprinted for the line with pure grit and determination. True came in seconds later, followed by Zaferes to complete an American clean sweep on the podium.

Of the Brits, Vicky Holland and Non Stanford managed to break the top 10 in 5th and 7th place respectively. Jodie Stimpson and Lucy Hall both had disappointing days, both posting DNF’s. Flora Duffy retains her lead in the world series overall, with the final race in Cozumel, Mexico on 18th September. 

Results

Summer Cook (USA) – 56:49

Sarah True (USA) – 56:52

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Katy Zaferes (USA) – 56:56

Flora Duffy (BER) – 57:10

Vicky Holland (GBR) – 57:15

Kirsten Kasper (USA) – 57:19

Non Stanford (GBR) – 57:30

Emma Jackson (AUS) – 57:36

Gillian Sanders (RSA) – 57:37

Jolanda Annen (SUI) – 57:41

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Despite the race taking place shortly after the Olympics, many who were there in Rio made the start line, including sprint specialist Mario Mola (ESP) Richard Murray (RSA) and Pierre La Corre (FRA). As well as Olympic silver medallist Jonny Brownlee, other Brits on the start line included Tom Bishop, Adam Bowden and Grant Sheldon.  

The swim began as always with Richard Varga (SVK) establishing a huge lead midway through the 750m course. Varga pushed on to finish the swim in a blistering 8:17mins, though it quickly became apparent he had no desire to ride solo as he was quickly joined by Jonny Brownlee and Arron Royle (AUS).
The chase pack were around 20secs down after lap 1 of 4 on the 20km bike leg, and the front three continued to work incredibly hard to keep their lead. Mola was in the chase group, and the other three Brits were all in there alongside Murray.

As the pecking order was maintained throughout the entire bike leg, the top three entered T2 with Brownlee quickly surging into the lead. Royle had a poor transition and was quickly caught by Mola, Murray and Sheldon, who looked to be battling it out for the podium places on the 5km run. 

As Brownlee continued to extend his lead, Mola and Murray broke free of Sheldon, having the race of his life, as Tom Bishop moved up to fifth place with 2km to go. Brownlee broke the tape in 51:39mins, a whole 17secs clear of Mola and completing another dominant performance on the ITU circuit.

Mola still leads the overall standings, and Jonny Brownlee has now moved up to second with Fernando Alarza of Spain in third. The world champion will therefore be decided in the Cozumel Grand Final on 18th September, and a grandstand finish could be on the cards between Brownlee and Mola in Mexico.

Results

1. Jonny Brownlee (GBR) – 51:39

2. Mario Mola (ESP) – 51:56

3.  Richard Murray (RSA) – 52:01

4. Grant Sheldon (GBR) – 52:09

5. Thomas Bishop (GBR) – 52:10

6. Steffen Justus (GER) – 52:15

7. Adam Bowden (GBR) – 52:19

8. Jonathan Zipf (GER) – 52:22

9. Shachar Sagiv (ISR) – 52:23

10. Joao Pereira (POR) – 52:28

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What did you think of the race? Let us know in the comments!