2019 Event Manual the Big Welsh Swim 2019 Event Manual

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2019 Event Manual www.Loveswimrun.co.uk The Big Welsh Swim 2019 Event Manual

Thank you for entering The Big Welsh Swim 2019 Saturday 13th July 2019 Sponsored by

Schedule of events acceptable. No neoprene other than that listed below) • 1 tow float (must be dedicated swimming tow float) Friday 12th July: • 1 pair goggles per participant 18:00 - 19:00 Registration Saturday 13th July: Mandatory equipment that Love SwimRun will supply 07:00 Registration opens • Timing chip 08:30 Registration closes (No registration after 8.30) • Silicone swim cap – must be worn. 08:40 Race briefing for all competitors 09:00 Train for 1.3km and 9km swimmers departs Strongly recommended equipment 09.20 Race start – 6km • Soft water bottle/hydration system 09.20 Race start – 1.3km • Isotonic gels 09.40 Race start – 9km • Waterproof sunblock (ocean friendly please!) 10:00 Train for 3km swimmers departs • flipflops/light footwear for walking to/from train 10:30 Race start – 3km • Non-wetsuit swimmers: warm layer for the train ride 12:45 Prize giving Extra equipment that IS allowed Registration • Neoprene swimming gloves Registration will take place at lake side, Gilfach Ddu, Llyn • Soft neoprene swimming socks/shoes Padarn Railway, Llanberis, North Wales. LL55 4TY (map on • Neoprene swimming hat (worn under your mandatory page 6). There will be a Coffee van open on Saturday swim cap) • Ear plugs morning. Registration closes promptly at 08.30 4.4 Equipment that IS NOT allowed Race briefing • Flippers There will be a compulsory race briefing at 08.40 in the • Hand paddles of any kind or webbed gloves Gilfach Ddu registration area at . It is mandatory for all • Any floatation aid other than a tow float participants to attend. Anyone who does not attended the • Headphones briefing will not be allowed to start. These items are not allowed for the sake of fairness and for the safety of other swimmers as well as for your own safety. Entry fee includes: • Love SwimRun swim cap Timing • Electronic race timing We will be using an electronic ankle tag system to time your • Buoy marked course swim. Timing chips will be issued at registration. If you are • Extensive water safety team swimming two way or three way you will be required to exit • First aid team the water at each end of the lake and register your chip by • 3 food/water stations walking over a mat to record your individual length times. • Finishers medal & a Wild Trail bar at the finish line Your final swim time includes your transition times. These will • Train ticket (excluding 2 way entries) be located by the feed stations so you can grab a drink and • Prize for winners in each category (see page 5) some treats while you are there! You DO NOT have to exit • Free event photos at the mid way feed station. Use of the timing system will be described at the pre-race briefing. Results will be found HERE! Kit list (please also see ‘Bag Drop’) Mandatory equipment for wetsuit swimmers 1.3km swimmers will have a mass start. All other swimmers • 1 wetsuit per participant suitable for water will have a time trial style start. Please be patient whilst temperature of 14+ degrees Celsius waiting to begin your swim. • 1 pair goggles per participant Timing chips must be handed in at the race finish line and Mandatory equipment for non-wetsuit swimmers will be exchanged for your finishers medal. Lost chips will be • Suitable swimwear (shorts style suits and rash vests are charged at £15 each so make sure you attach them well!

Love SwimRun Ltd Registered in England and Wales, Registration No: 11962237. Registered Office Address: Y Bedol, Conwy Old Rd, Capelulo, Penmaenmawr, Conwy, LL34 6SP The Big Welsh Swim 2019 Event Manual

Cut-off High5 gels, sweets, biscuits, bananas, salty snacks. The cut off time is 4.5 hours from your start time. All will be suitable for vegetarians and vegans. This is mainly for 9km swimmers - a cut off is necessary because we are concerned about your safety Please make sure you are well hydrated. Eat a good and well being and the well being of our water safety team. breakfast and eat plenty at the food stations to help avoid The cut off time will be enforced and you may be prevented fatigue and hypothermia. It is highly recommended that you from starting your final length if it is deemed that you carry at least one gel with you. Bananas are high in will not finish in the time allowed. Additionally if any potassium and will help prevent cramp so we recommend marshal deems you unfit to continue your swim due to you eat one before you swim and again at the feed stations. fatigue, hypothermia or any other condition you may be asked to retire. Please co-operate if you are asked to stop. When you finish your swim you will be given a Wild Trail bar along with your medal. We will not have cups or bottles of Course overview water in an effort to reduce plastic waste. The Big Welsh Swim will take place in Llyn Padarn in Padarn Country Park. The course will follow the side of the Emergencies, safety and medical lake and will be way marked with brightly coloured buoys All swims will be supported by safely kayaks and two spaced about 400-500m apart. Swimmers doing more power boats will be on standby to lift you from the water than one length will be swimming both up and down the if necessary. There will also be a team of land based lake. To prevent head on collisions you must always keep marshals and a first aid team. First aid HQ is at Gilfach Du. the buoys on your right. The race finish will be at lake An ambulance will be stationed there. side, Gilfach Du. It is your responsibility to inform of us of any medical The swim course will stay close to the northern shore of the conditions which we should know about before the swim at lake. There are a number of places where you can exit the registration if you have not already done so when entering. water in an emergency if you need to. 6km and 9km swimmers swimming north to Pen Llyn must always give If you become injured or require assistance please make way to swimmers swimming south to Gilfach Du when your way to the nearest marshal or if you cannot swim, crossing to the mid way feed station. float on your back and raise your hand in the air. How to summon assistance will also be described at the Lake beaches are mainly slate waste which can be very pre-race briefing. If you wish to withdraw mid-race, rocky and sharp so please be very careful when getting in please inform a marshal or kayaker. or out with bare feet. Please try to stay on the blue matting provided for your comfort. The submerged end Expected weather and water conditions of the matt is marked by a spherical orange buoy. The water temperature in Llyn Padarn in late July can range between 15-18°C. Air Temperatures could be anywhere Trains between 12-24°C! It is North Wales! The unpredictable 09:00 Train for 1.3km and 9km swimmers departs mountain area weather in Snowdonia can make changes to 10:00 Train for 3km swimmers departs the race route necessary. The swim course may be changed if Trains leave from Gilfach Ddu station (see map). there is low visibility, waves caused by high wind, low temperatures, or any other reason that puts your safety at risk. You will have to show your swim cap in order to board the Depending on the weather conditions, the water can be train. You will be asked to board a certain carriage choppy so being able to breath on either side will be beneficial. depending on your swim speed (you decide on the day) and on reaching Pen Llyn the fastest swimmers will be set Toilet facilities off first to avoid any congestion and lessen the likelihood of There are toilets in the car park at Gilfach Du. There is a anyone swimming over the top of you! portaloo at the mid way station. There are no toilets at Pen Llyn, the Northern end of the lake (start for1 & 3 way There will be a short walk at the end of the ride so you will swimmers) Please ensure you go to the loo before you need to bring flipflops or similar. The area at Pen Llyn is board the train! very narrow and access is difficult so there will be a wait to enter the water. KEEP OUT of the road! Please be Changing facilities/Showers patient and have your bag/shoes ready to hand over as There will be changing facilities available next to the toliets soon as it is your turn to swim. in the main carpark. Sorry, no showers are available.

Food stations Refreshments There will be 3 food stations for use during the swim: We have arranged for mobile catering vans to be present at one at each end of the lake and one at the mid way the finish area in Gilfach Du. They will be serving hot drinks, train station. On the food stations we will provide: water, cake, ice cream & wood fired pizza. Vegan options available.

Bag drop tolerate! 1.3km & 6km swimmers: There will be a space for you to • Dangerous or offensive behaviour: The course is in an leave 1 small bag at the finish line. open public lake. Any disregard for other users (on land or in water) or offensive behaviour, including being rude to race 1.3km, 3km or 9km swimmers: You may take a SMALL marshals or kayakers will result in disqualification. Please be bag with you. Your bag must be not be any bigger than 35 nice to marshals. Please thank them, they’ve given up their x 45 cm. We suggest a small rucksack or drawstring bag. time to allow you to take part! Please make sure nothing can fall out. You must label your • Use of prohibited equipment: If you are found to be using bag with your name and registration number. Labels will be any of the equipment listed as prohibited items you will be at registration. Your bags cannot be guaranteed secure and disqualified. If this happens mid swim, and you wish to you leave them at your own risk. Please do not leave any continue swimming to the end of the course you will be valuable items in them as we cannot be held responsible asked to surrender the prohibited items. Please do so for any losses. without argument. (1.3km swimmers please note: bags from 1.3km start will not arrive at the finish line before swimmers do! 1.3km Entries on the day swimmers may also leave a second SMALL bag at the We are fully booked but in the event of there being spare finish line with shoes, water and a warm layer) places when registration closes at 08.30 we will offer them on a first come first served basis. There will be a form to fill in. Please don’t wear large items such as Dryrobes on the Please be ready to swim and bring the correct cash to pay. train unless they compress into a small bag. As much as we love them too, we cannot transport a hundreds of them! Prize giving All finishers will receive a really nice (even if we do say so Bio Security ourselves!) Big Welsh Swim medal! Llyn Padarn is a designated Site of Special Scientific We will be awarding first place prizes of £15 Zone3 Interest (SSSI). The lake is of great ecological and vouchers in the following distance categories; economic significance; consequently we need to take • Male: 1.3km, 3km, 6km, 9km precautions to protect this incredible lake from invasive • Female: 1.3km, 3km, 6km, 9km non-native species (INNS). Impacts of INNS are so • Junior male (with guardian): 1.3km significant, they are considered to be one of the greatest • Junior female (with guardian): 1.3km threats to biodiversity worldwide. These species can be • Fastest non-wetsuit swimmer: 1.3km, 3km, 6km, 9km transferred through drops of water and plant fragments. Second place swimmers will receive a £10 voucher from They can have huge detrimental implications if they Love SwimRun and third place swimmers will receive a £5 ‘hitchhike’ on your equipment. They can out-compete and voucher from Love SwimRun to put towards another event. kill native species, block waterways and exacerbate the There are no cash alternatives. risks of flooding. In order to prevent this, we ask that ALL kit is cleaned in tap water and fully dried before you swim in Spectator info Llyn Padarn. On completion of the Big Welsh Swim, please Spectators are welcome at Love SwimRun events. ensure that you wash down all of your kit in tap water and There are plenty of good spots from which to support fully dry it before using it elsewhere. your friends along the side of the lake.

Rules and T&C’s Trains: Unfortunately there is not space on the trains for Love SwimRun general rules and Terms and Conditions spectators, but spectators can walk along the side of the can be found at: http://loveswimrun.co.uk/the-big-welsh- lake. Please be aware that from 11.45am public trains will swim-race-rules/. Please read through these carefully. We begin running so you must take care and keep out of the have a no refunds policy and limited deferral options. way as they pass you. Alternatively, why not catch the first public train and enjoy a train ride yourself. This leaves All competitors must sign a document of “Release From Gilfach Du station at about 11.50am. Liability” at registration. Accommodation Llyn Padarn is open to the public and there are likely to be See our list of accommodation providers here. other recreational users, including other swimmers, kayakers, canoes and stand up paddle boards. We will do our up Shops most to ensure people know the event is taking place but The village center is a 15 min walk away from the event please keep an eye out and take care to avoid collisions! area. There are outdoors shops in Llanberis, a pharmacy and a SPAR, plus a great cafe called Pete’s Eats that serves For clarity, instant disqualification offences include: pints of tea! Snowdonia Water Sports is located at Y Glyn • Littering: We rely on the goodwill of the landowners and just outside the village (see map), this stocks wetsuits and local communities for this event to be possible. Litter is swimming gear etc. so if you forget your goggles or tow something they are all very sensitive about and we do not float this is the place to go!

START: Pen Llyn Map of - 3km - 9km Key End of train line Swim route

Direction of Swimmers Always keep the buoys on your right & sight regularly Feed station A4086 START: 1.3km Train line

Free parking Main Event Area & Snowdonia Water - Registration Sports shop. Car Parking - Briefing There is parking at Gilfach Du itself indicated on - START: 6km the map. Disabled places are available here - - Food stalls please arrive early if you need one as we are unable to reserve them for you. Please do not park on the road. We only have limited space in this carpark as it is also the main carpark for other attractions. Once our allotted area of this public car park is full Gilfach there is also another carpark on the road that leads Ddu Trains depart into Gilfach Du - there is a pleasant 5-10minute walk here to registration from there. Parking marshals will be positioned on the roads to direct you to the car parks Llanberis with spaces we can use. All parking is Pay & Dis- Village play and costs £4 cash or £5.50 card depending on which carpark you park in. The parking fees are used to fund the upkeep of Padarn Country Park. Please More parking car share where possible! There is free parking a 25 minute walk away (see map). Gilfach Ddu Area Travel By car: Llanberis typically is 5 hours from London by car, 2 hours from Manchester. To access Llanberis turn off at Junction 20 of the M6 onto the M56, follow signs for NORTH WALES to reach Trains the A55. Use post code LL55 4TY in your Sat Nav depart to reach Gilfach Ddu station, Llyn Padarn Railway. here FINISH Toilets & It is located near the Slate Museum so look for changing signs for that too. Public transport: The closest train station to Parking Llanberis is in Bangor. Buses run from Bangor to Llanberis.

Contact us - Registration First Aid Email: [email protected] - Briefing Call: 07791685269 / 07738288552 - Food stalls Slate Museum WAY Facebook: www.facebook.com/loveswimrun IN/OUT Twitter: @loveswimrun

Note: This manual is intended to be as comprehensive as possible, but the nature of the local weather, swim course and the area it takes place in means that it is not possible to be 100% accurate on all matters. The important details are correct though. There will be a compulsory race briefing where any last minute changes will be brought to your attention. The organisers reserve the right to alter any element of the manual.

Love SwimRun Ltd Registered in England and Wales, Registration No: 11962237. Registered Office Address: Y Bedol, Conwy Old Rd, Capelulo, Penmaenmawr, Conwy, LL34 6SP