there was enough of a cohort at bala to reach a quick consensus which event will the 'official' one next year - i.e. the big one, with the shields and awards. so Ironman France Nice was picked.
it's easy to get to, well organised, a nice place for a holiday, and doesn't fill up so quickly. also, more to the point, not many pirates have done it. no rush, but an early warning is obviously an idea for people who want to plan their season.
as ever, there will be a lot of help for any beginners who want to take the plunge and move up to full distance.
re this year's race, in Austria next month, mr m should win the fast shield this year, so if you kick ass in France you might have the honour of having your moniker engraved beneath such illustrious names as him, rosie and TC.
as far as the most piratey shield, that's still open for whoever turns out to be the biggest clown at austria, but any newbies and almost-newbies out there who can develop a good level of numtiness might fing themselves engraved under the less auspicious monikers of barlist, ergo and some other miscreant.
hopefully we'll see a lot of you there in 2008, new faces and old alike
