Sunday and I did my first ever marshaling stint in a Triathlon event. This in fact was an Ultra Triathlon or “Ultrathon”(if there is such a word) event in West Kent called “The Marshman” as it started and finished in Lydd on the Romney Marshes. An early morning start ( for the 80 odd participants ) with – wait for it – a 1900 metre swim followed by an 89.5K bike ride and to round it off a 22.3K run.A tall order you might justifiably think and you would be correct.However it is in each of the disciplines approx half of the “classic” Ironman event which comes in at 3860M swim,180.23k bike and for dessert the full marathon distance of 26.2 miles. The endurance requirements to complete the course whatever standard or age/gender category  for even the shorter of the two events is , to put it mildly, demanding  so hats off to all of those who took part and take part in the various Ultra and Sprint Tri events through the year. Speaking of hats I was stationed half way through the cycle section in the beautiful little village of Appledore and what impressed me the most was not only the speed of the cyclists but the gear which they were using. This included what were obviously,for the leaders,very expensive( + £2000 ? ) cycles and also the hi tech clothing including , on the theme of head wear , the aerodynamic slightly space age helmets. All in all an expensive hobby in terms of the initial expense at least. But obviously a  rapidly growing sport with competitors no doubt inspired by the tremendous achievements in recent years of the likes of the Brownlee brothers,Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome. Had considered having a go at one stage but immediately had a sinking feeling as my swimming ability is limited to a very inefficient breaststroke. Decided that it was not for me! I`ll stick to good old road and cross country running – no need for aerodynamic head gear.