2023 Race Report
An Epic Weekend in Eryri
SATURDAY
An incredibly warm day in Llanberis saw the first day of the Slateman take place in full sunshine.
The event kicked off on Saturday morning with the Sprint Triathlon and Duathlon. In the Triathlon The first athletes out of the water were Scott Hill (in 14.01) and Anwen Nesham (in 14.04), a result that was to go on to reflect the whole race.
The hard climb up the Llanberis Pass, made more challenging by a noticeable headwind lay ahead for the bike course, which turns around after a steep descent to Pen y Gwryd, to climb up and over in the opposite direction back towards transition. Impressively quick transitions saw Anwen Nesham and Jessica Denman first out onto the bike course, closely followed by Scott Hill, being chased by Jayson Cavill.
Returning to T2, the race order hadn't changed, with Scott Hill leading the race and the Open Category, followed by Jayson and Alex Wallace. The order remained the same in the female category, with Anwen Nesham coming into T2 ahead of Jessica Denman, with Katie Edge in 3rd place.
Out on the run, Jayson Cavill fought back 50 seconds from Scott Hill, and combined with consistently impressive transition times, meant that we were in for a close finish. In the end, Scott took the win, having led throughout, in 1:23:12, being chased by Jayson who finished in 1:23:52. Alex Wallace remained in 3rd place, crossing the line in 1:28:30.
Anwen Nesham looked relaxed throughout her run course, taking 1st place in 1:36:08. Crossing the line in 1:41:16 Jessica Denman took 2nd with a convincing 10-minute lead over 3rd place Katie Edge, who finished in 1:51:30.
Run 1 of the Sprint Duathlon established the order in the Female category, with Rhian Thomas reaching T1 in 11.52, closely followed by Emma Edwards in 12.22. Julie Hall followed at 14:06 and chased the others out onto the bike course. Following the same steep ride as the triathlon, Rhian opened up an 8-minute lead on the bike course, which she maximised on the run, finishing in 1st place in 1:40:27. Emma maintained her 2nd place, crossing the line at 1:53:18 ahead of Julie who completed the course in 2:20:20.
The Open category was a fiercely fought race with Llyr Ap Geraint-Roberts' runs and impressively quick transitions providing him with the win in 1:23:01, ahead of James Hards, who fought hard on the bike to take 2nd place in 1:25:40. Third place went to Caron Jones, who crossed the line just 23 seconds after James in 1:26:03.
Full results for Saturday's races can be seen below.
SUNDAY
Sunday saw a drop in the wind and the arrival of some cloud cover; conditions remained hot and humid.
It was a 7.30am start for the Legend athletes. Anthony Pontiflex was first out of the water with the only sub-30 minute swim of the race. In the female category, Sarah Kidd was first back on dry land with a swim time of 35.26. On to the bikes for a 92km ride taking in the best road biking in Eryri (Snowdonia) with steep climbs and fast descents up and down the mountain passes.
In the Open race, Tom Williams & Luke Goldsworthy had a superb ride, giving bringing them to the front of the pack and leaving T2 with Tom in the lead, being changed by last year's winner Luke. As in 2022, Luke's performance on the run proved unbeatable, seeing him take the tape again in 4:45:47, with over a 9-minute lead. Finishing an impressive race and also completing in under 5 hours, Tom took second place in 4:55:11. Third place went to Jake Hodgetts in a time of 5:18:59.
In the Female category, Elizabeth Docherty put in the fastest bike performance, closing the gap on the faster swimmers and making it a very close race leaving T2. It was the run that decided things in the end however, with two laps of the Standard distance run loop, including two ascents of the infamous ‘zig-zags’ up and through the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Dinorwig quarry and steep descents into the forests of Parc Padarn. Alison Williams and Emily Young put in strong performances to give us a very close finish, with Alison taking the tape in 6:27:14, followed by Emily in 6:27:39. Third place went to Jennifer Ansell whose consistent performances across all three disciplines, brought her home in 6:36:00.
The Open Standard race was led out of the water by Billy Kinnear, Seamus Sheard and Damo Littlewood, who were all through T1 and out on the bike quickly. Returning from Saturday's Sprint distance, Savage distance athlete Scott Hill quickly made up the gap on the bike course and lead until a few miles from the end, where a mechanical took him out of the race. a combination of fantastic rides and runs decided the final order of the race, with Duncan Shea-Simonds' ride and run combination taking the with for him in 2:42:39, ahead of Damo Littlewood in 2:43:55 and Jayson Cavill, 'fresh' from his impressive Sprint race the day before, taking 3rd in 2:44:57, as well as winning the Savage weekend overall.
In the Female category, Ashia Reeder's fast swim, transition times and bike performances were enough to see off Sarah Harrison's attack on the run course to take the tape in 3:04:48, ahead of Sarah's finish in 3:06:24. Third place went to Helen Nyul, with another strong finish on the run eating into Ashia's early lead.
In The Men’s Duathlon, a very tight first run required the bike course and longer run through the Dinorwig Quarries to split the field. In the end, James Brayford proved his talent in both these legs to take the tape in 3:00:40, with Andrew Rogers' final run bringing him 2nd place in 3:06:16 and Mark Môn-Williams 3rd in 3:10:45; a very well fought race indeed.
The ladies' Duathlon positions were held throughout with solid performances from all three ladies with Jen Edwards taking the win in 3:57:33, 5 minutes ahead of second-place Louise Toach (4:02:40) and third-place Emma Watson-Jones (4:03:02).
Company Director Tim Lloyd said: "It's great to see the Slateman going strong, now into its 11th year. We really don't think there is another racing experience to match this, and it's why we conceived of this as our first race back in 2011.
So many people have approached our team today to tell them just how great Slateman is and how it has impacted them over the years. It’s a challenging race and the Eryri weather can make it even more so, but that’s why people come – because they want to do an epic race in a spectacular environment.
It’s been a joy to welcome so many people this weekend and see new faces, returning faces and of course those from the local community. We’ve enjoyed some inspiring racing this weekend; it's always exciting as you just can’t predict results at an event like Slateman!
We couldn’t do any of this without the unwavering support of our sponsors and spectators and the dedication of our Marshals and core team who work long hours with smiles on their faces, because they love seeing events like Slateman take place just as much as we do – thank you to you all"
Selected Results
Sprint Triathlon Women:
🥇 Anwen Nesham 1:36:08
🥈 Jessica Denman 1:41:16
🥉 Katie Edge 1:51:30
Sprint Triathlon Open:
🥇 Scott Hill 1:23:12
🥈 Jayson Cavill 1:23:52
🥉 Alex Wallis 1:28:30
Sprint Duathlon Women:
🥇 Rhian Thomas 1:40:27
🥈 Emma Edwards 1:53:18
🥉 Julie Hall 2:20:20
Sprint Duathlon Open:
🥇 Llyr ap Geraint- Roberts 1:23:01
🥈 James Hards 1:25:47
🥉 Caron Jones 1:26:03
Standard Triathlon Women:
🥇 Ashia Reeder 3:04:48
🥈 Sarah Harrison 3:06:24
🥉 Helen Nyul 3:10:41
Standard Triathlon Open:
🥇 Duncan Shea- Simmonds 2:42:39
🥈 Damo Littlewood 2:43:55
🥉 Jayson Cavill 2:44:57
Standard Duathlon Women:
🥇 Jen Edwards 3:57:33
🥈 Louise Toach 4:02:40
🥉 Emma Watson- Jones 4:03:02
Standard Duathlon Open:
🥇 James Brayford 3:00:40
🥈 Andrew Rodgers 3:06:16
🥉 Mark Môn Williams 3:10:45
Legend Triathlon Women
🥇 Alison Williams 6:27:14
🥈 Emily Young 6:27:39
🥉 Jennifer Ansell 6:36:00
Legend Triathlon Open
🥇 Luke Goldsworthy 4:45:47
🥈 Tom Williams 4:55:11
🥉 Jake Hodgetts 5:18:59
Savage Triathlon Open
🥇 Jayson Cavill 4:08:49
🥈 Jonathan Saunders 4:34:45
🥉 Scott Mackenzie 4:42:40
Savage Triathlon Women
🥇 Jessica Denman 5:02:53
🥈 Deborah Raisbeck 5:42:37
🥉 Julie Ogilvie 6:55:39