Lomond Hills Adventure Triathlon competitors notes This is an exciting, new, adventure triathlon that has been a long time in the planning. The event is being organised by the East Triathlon Club and will be held close to midsummer during the evening of Thursday 1st July, 2021. The race will be based at Harperleas Reservoir in the beautiful Lomond Hills, close to the village of Falkland, Fife. This sprint-style event is for competitors age 18 and over and ideally for triathletes who have competed in an open water triathlon before and have some mountain biking and off- road running experience. The race involves a:

• 750m swim in Harperleas Reservoir, • 8km mountain bike on various types of track (bikes will need to lifted over some gates), and a • 6km run to the top of and back. The race is taking place on a sensitive site which is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and is also an active catchment area for Fife’s drinking water. Scottish Water are rightly very precious about the way we look after this part of the Lomond hills, as of course are the farmers, whose land the event goes through. Therefore, there will be bio- security measures in place to ensure no alien species are introduced to the site. Competitors will be asked to provide an estimated swim time on the entry form. This is in case we decide to split swimmers into two swim waves which will be based on swim time. This race will run with social distancing measures in place and details will follow later. Location and parking Event HQ and transition will be in a clearing to the south of the dam at Harperleas reservoir. The nearest car park is at Craigmead, which is at the top of the road between Falkland and Leslie. Parking will be very limited and its advised that care sharing is not recommended. Competitors are encouraged to be dropped off and picked up at the end. There will be a marshal directing traffic. Bio-security measures will be in place at Craigmead and all competitors must adhere to them (details later). Getting to the event HQ from Craigmead will take about 20 minutes, most of which can be cycled. Marshals will be on hand to direct competitors. This is the only way you can get to the race HQ. Parking will not be allowed at the road end to Little Ballo (there will be a marshal located there to stop anyone parking). Additional parking can be found in the village of Falkland and this option provides a good warm-up cycle to the event.

Race timetable (Subject to review to ensure Covid 19 safe) 5.00 pm – Craigmead carpark and bio-security open for competitors. All competitors must go through bio-security. 5:30 pm – Race registration opens at event HQ. 6:30 pm - All competitors arrived at event HQ. 6:45 pm – Registration closes. 7:00 pm - First swim wave (slowest) TBC. 7:20 pm – Second swim wave TBC 7.30 pm – Third swim wave TBC 9:00 pm – No competitors allowed to start the run section after this time. 9:30 pm – Prize giving – dependant on the rulings at the time. Bio-security measures Race equipment (i.e. bike, shoes, clothes, wetsuit) must be dry and free from mud. At Craigmead, all competitors will be asked to disinfect their bike and shoes by spraying them with a disinfectant called Cleankill. Wet suits will be checked to ensure that no bits are adhering to any Velcro fastenings.

Toilets The toilets at the car park at Craigmead will be open. There will be very limited toilets at Harperleas; toileting in any place other than the porta potties provided is not allowed and will result in disqualification. Note – as of March 2021 we do think we will be allowed to provide toilets at the race HQ. Race route Swim This is a 750 swim in Harperleas Reservoir. The swim will start on the north shore and follow the shore line for about 300m where there will be a buoy placed 20m off shore; competitors turn left round the buoy heading to the south east corner of the dam. For safety there will be three kayaks on the water to monitor swimmers. There will also be a spotter on the shore. There may be two swim waves, the first being for slower swimmers starting 20 minutes before the main race. It is likely that this wave would be restricted to the 20 slowest swimmers. All swimmers should be able to complete the swim in less than 30 minutes to allow enough time for the bike section to be completed before the run course closes. Triathlon ’s rules would apply regarding the wearing of wet suits.

Bike The cycle consists of one 8km lap.

The type of bike will be restricted to mountain bike only with knobbly tyres. No drop handlebars allowed. Competitors would take their bikes and mount them once out of the transition area. The cycle will take them down the track to West Balgothrie where they would then turn right by the farm and head West toward East Feal. Competitors will turn right just before a cattle grid and then head north on a mix of land rover track and grassy path as these go over heartache hill followed by “you thought it was over rise” and then back to Harperleas. There are several gates (8) including “kissing gates” that competitors will have to negotiate but marshals will be on hand to assist. It is hoped that some of the gates will be left open for the duration of the event.

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Run On returning to transition, the run route exits to the south and heads west along the track towards Glen Vale, turns right up the Devil’s Burdens, utilising gates and styles in places, to the summit of West Lomond. Don’t forget to enjoy the views of Fife and beyond. The route heads round the summit cairn and descends steeply to the south east returning to the main track in Glen Vale and back to transition. This route (approx. 6km and 270m of ascent) follows existing paths and tracks. Competitors must use stiles and gates and not climb over walls or fences. Hill running shoes should be used; trail running shoes with good traction may be suitable if the weather has been dry. All competitors will need to wear, or carry, a waterproof jacket on the run. Additional kit (waterproof trousers, gloves, hat, whistle, map of the run route and a compass) may need to be carried in the event of bad weather.

Contingency plan If for any reason the swim course is unavailable, the event will convert to a duathlon consisting of a run (3.5 km), cycle (8 km), run (6 km). The first run will start at transition and head west for 550m and then turn left along the path that forms the last section of the cycle route. There will be a dead turn at a kissing gate in a clearing in the woods. This run will be 3.5km. The runners then return to the transition area ready for the cycle section on the race. The second run will take in West Lomond as per the route described above. Prizes Prizes will be awarded to the first, second and third males and females. There will be no age group prizes. Prizes will consist of a race memento.

Farm animals It is hoped there will be little or no contact with farm animals during the event, but should competitors come upon a stressed or aggressive animal the advice is to avoid them; best practice would be to walk quietly and quickly away from, or around, the animal at as safe a distance as practicably possible. Avoid running around animals as this can cause them to react. At the first available opportunity, inform a marshal or other race official of the situation. Competitors must leave gates as they find them (i.e. if gates are closed, them close them after going through). Litter Competitors (and any supporters) must ensure no litter is dropped. Littering will result in disqualification. Dogs Part of our agreement for the use of the reservoir and farm land is to ask competitors and their supporters not to bring dogs to the race area. We would really appreciate your support on this.