It has been a long 4 years.  4 years of endless phone calls, emails, visits, risk assessments, council meetings and sleepless nights.  But it is finally here!  The plans to hold a Deca Ironman in the UK have stretched all over this land.  Enduroman have attempted to organize the Deca at the following locations but with so many boxes to tick, they have all come up short:


(Impressive views of Avon Tyrell Estate House)

John O'Groats to Lands End, Snowdonia, Lichfield, Telford, Nottingham, Birmingham, Sutton Park, Hyde Park, Battersea Park, Cornwall, Crystal Palace, Kings Park, Bournemouth, Boscombe.....  The list is twice this size at least. 

There are so many factors that Enduroman would not compromise on, that potential sites could not fulfill.  Enduroman really wanted the Double and Triple Iron races to fall within the same competition.  This would make a fantastic event for all involved, especially as all the events would finish on the same day.  We really wanted an open water swim.  We have been too kind to our athletes over the last 3 years allowing them to enjoy the luxury of an indoor swimming pool.  No more bluffing the swim training and concentrating only on biking and running!


(Avon Tyrrell campsite and the lodges available for accommodation upgrades for athletes)

Once we decided that the swim would be open water, it became obvious that the option of holding the original format Deca was not possible.  Holding a 24 mile swim on Day 1 would mean that some swimmers would be in the water for more than 20 hours.  Open water swimming, during the night, in Great Britain presents some risky cold injury and safety issues.  So a 10 x 10 Ironmen in day days was decided to be the format.  The race would start each day at the same time.  On Day 8, the Triple Enduroman race would start.  On Day 9 the Double Enduroman race would start.  And on Day 10 the Enduroman UK (1 x Iron) event would start.  All 4 events would finish on Day 10.

Sounds easy doesn't it?  Nope.  I now had to find an open water location. The sea was a no-starter really.  One bad day with the wind and the whole event would be a disaster.  So we had to find a lake, that would give us 3 hours of lake time each day, and the whole of the lake for the last 3 days.  Let me know if you find any!!!  With so many swimming, triathlon, water sports clubs using the lake on the same day/evening each week it was impossible to find a location.  We didn't want to chose a lake, that athletes had to travel to, to start the race.  We wanted it to be next to the campsite, bike and run courses.  The list of suitable locations was already very small.


(Race HQ and the location's lake)

Wherever this lake would be, the bike course would have to have left turns only (for the Deca's safety), and the course would have to run past the campsite.  On this campsite would be the race centre, catering and the options for the athletes to upgrade accommodation.  The run course would be completely closed to traffic, without crossing any public roads, that of course, runs past the race centre.

After 4 years, the list of suitable locations was now zero.  To be honest, I was about the give up on the idea.  Then one day, a friend mentioned they had done a novice triathlon at Avon Tyrell, Hampshire.  After a bit of Googling, I decided to drive across to the location just out of curiosity.  I introduced myself to the site manager and the response I got when I went through the basic requirements of the event were very positive.  Usually, we have to try and sell our events to these people, and try and work our way through all their red tape.  The manger's attitude this time was, "What can we do for you to ensure the event comes here?"  Now that's the sort of team that Enduroman wants to work with.  To add to this, the manager is an ex-triathlete and Army officer so we had lots in common.


(Avon Tyrrell race lake)

Several recce's of the location then began, and we have found what we believe to be the perfect race site.  It is true that things you want mostly come when you are not looking for them.  Avon Tyrrell is an outdoor activity centre.  A private estate set within 65 acres of the stunning New Forest.  It has its own lake which is quite small (around 300m laps).  However we would plan on the laps being this small anyway to keep an eye on the athletes and giving the swimmers a chance to feed and see their support crew on a regular basis.  The bike route is planned to take place around the villages  of Bransgore and Burley, using left turns only, with stunning backdrops throughout the course.  And the undulating run route is entirely within the private grounds.

Avon Tyrell has its own campsite, private lodges, catering and event licence.  It is almost purpose built for Enduroman.  Entries have already gone live.  Get a place while you still can!


(The run route through Avon Tyrrell Blair Witch 2 woods)