Ionut gives rave reviews to Beauvais!!!

The weekend of the 20th and 21st of June the 30th edition of the Beauvais triathlon took place. The competition is organized by the town hall of Beauvais and it proposes the XS, S and L distances. I decided to compete in the S distance which was organized Saturday, the 20th of June. It was my first time at the Beauvais triathlon. The swimming took place in the lake 'Plan d'Eau du Canada', the biking was on the road just next to the lake (4 laps of 5Km) and the running was on one side of the lake (2 laps of 2.5Km) There was a single transition area, near the lake. The transitions were short distance with grass on the ground. I got my bib on the day of the race at the tents installed near the lake. Everything went quickly and without problems. I had plenty of time after to check the different shops and I might say that I saw quite nice products from triathlon laces, swimming goggles and wet suits to triathlon bikes. From Paris I got the train to Beauvais Gare and after I rode to the lake (around 5Km). One should pay attention to the road to the lake: you could take a path through the forest or follow the road D931. I would avoid the path through the forest, even if it is a bit shorter, it is bumpy and it has a surface with gravel. We had a beautiful weather, 23°C outside, a lake temperature of 21.5°C and a sun most of the time hid behind the clouds. The lake water was clear and clean and the start was given from a small sand beach. The swim had two straight lines and there was plenty of space to go without worrying you would hit someone. There were two huge red buoys easy to follow. The exit from the water was very accessible and large enough. The organizers put even a carpet at the exit from the water to the transition area. The biking lap could be split into two parts: one climb (approx. 220m of elevation gain) which took us through the forest 'Forêt Domaniale du Parc Saint-Quentin' and one fast descent. The climb would have been better without the speed bumps, 5 of them badly shaking your bike at each lap. There were no speed bumps on the descent and the few turns were large enough not to make you to slow down suddenly. Here are my biking laps recorded on Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/329412609 The run path was flat with a gravel surface. The generous width of the road and the open space (the race is in the middle of a field) took away from me the psychological pressure I feel most of the time during multiple laps run when I see the other competitors running on the opposite way. I especially appreciated the good organization of the race and the people on the sides encouraging us. Thank you all for the gorgeous day!