Triathlon test for Ashfield students

The Uniformed Services Department fundraises for good causes related to the military, police and fire service every year and this event was all in aid of Help For Heroes.

It involved the post-16 students getting up early every morning last week so they were ready to dive into the pool at 8am and get that day’s triathlon underway.

Each one consisted of a 760m swim followed by 50 laps of the athletic track on their bikes (20km) and a 5km run.

Julie Taylor, head of uniformed services, said that the week had been ‘physically and mentally challenging’ for the teenagers.

“It’s character building stuff because it is very tough,” she said.

“Nutritionally they have to eat the right things and have breakfast before 7am so they are ready.

“They also have to go to bed early so they are well rested.”

The uniformed services course includes a lot of physical training, preparing the students for fitness tests that they will face when they go for jobs in the Army, Navy and other forces or services.

But though taking part in five triathlons in five days is the toughest test many of them have faced to date, there were some outstanding performances.

Sam Oates achieved the best time of the week, finishing his triathlon in 01:20:51 on the second day.

Ryan Wood gave him a run for his money - on the third day their times were just 14 seconds apart and on the fourth day Sam won by just two seconds.

On the final day the pair were involved in a clash on their cycles and both suffered minor injuries but continued together and eventually crossed the line in a dead heat.

“I am incredibly proud of the uniformed services students who put maximum effort into achieving their best possible times,” Julie added.

“They all get ranked in how well they have done and that level of competition brings them all up.

“When you look at the figures, there was a big difference on the second day of triathlon to the first because they wanted to beat their times.”

The group are hoping to raise more than £3,000 for the Help For Heroes and the final amount raised will be announced later in the school year.