Braighe is an apt name for the beach as it means sandy strand in Gaelic. The sandy side of the beach is a fine sandy strand between two parts of the island.
You can swim on either side but normally the west side is calmer as it faces a protected bay.
Although when I visited (Sep 2022) it was the east side that was flat as a pancake.
The water temperature was 13C and the tide was fully in. Be careful when swimming that you don’t go too close to the shore there are posts sticking up from the beach that you can’t see when the tide is in. I hit one with my hand and it was sore!
REVIEW
Ease of Access: There are three car parks available. The middle one has toilets. It is only a 10 minute drive from Stornoway to the beach.
Water quality: The water quality is crystal clear and perfect for swimming although on a wild day it can get a bit sea weedy on the bay side.
Swim Quality: Cold. In December the temperature was 7C. I had a short swim in a circle. In the summer I’ve been here and swam the length of the beach.
Other People: Not a soul.
Would I go back: Yes. Its the easiest place to get to have a sea swim that is near my parent’s home in Stornoway. Normally one side of the beach will protected from any bad weather.
This was the 6th edition of the Hebrides Triathlon – the most remote triathlon in the UK. It’s as far north and west as you can go in the UK before you reach Canada.
I’ve done 5 of the races. I think it has rained at every one. This year was no exception!
It’s also the best value race in the UK as it’s only £36 to enter. £12 for each event is a bargain.
Swim
The swim course was two laps of a triangular course. Each side of the triangle was approximately 250m.
The water was warm (17C) but it was windy which caused the water to be choppy. The safety team said that they would make the sighting easier by placing people on SUPs halfway between each buoy. But I think they struggled to stay in position due to the wind as whenever I looked for one they were well off course. I ignored them and sighted on the bouys instead,
About half way round I noticed a swimmer with a bright orange wet suit. They seemed to be sighting well and were going at a similar pace. So, as they were easy to spot, I followed them to the end. It was only when I got out that I realized it was a friend of mine. Thanks Paul for the pull!
This is one of the worst pictures of me that I have ever seen. I look about 20 years older than I am!
Bike
The bike route is an out and back undulating route to the Callanish Stones. Normally a fierce wind either blows you there or back. One year it took 60 minutes to do the out but only 30 minutes to do the back.
I haven’t done much biking since Celtman due to a dose of Covid so I took my TT bike to the race. My thinking was that I might be slow but at least it won’t be the bikes fault.
I decided to use a new tactic for the race. Instead of wearing tri gear or bike gear I changed into my running gear with the thought that I’d gain the time back by jumping off my bike at the end of and just head straight out onto the run course.
The first 6 miles were straight into a strong headwind. Which thankfully eased off as I the road turned more south. It was a struggle out to the Stones. But thankfully it was easier on the way back.
At one point a man passed me on the other side of the road heading back to the start. I thought he couldn’t possibly be in the race as there was no way he’d be that far ahead of me. He was. He was super quick.
When I mentioned this to folk afterwards I discovered that everyone else had thought the same. Some people even thought he must have taken a wrong turn to get back to the start so soon.
My aim was to do it in less than 90 minutes and I managed it in 85 minutes.
Run
The run starts by going straight up a small hill. I started running and immediately felt very heavy. My first thought was I must have eaten too much whilst spending the previous week at my mum’s house eating my mum’s baking.
I’d done a lot during the week leading up to the race, which meant my running motivation/energy was very low. I aimed to run 5K and then evaluate from there how fast/slow to do the last 5k.
I’ve also had an achilles problem since before the Celtman race. Which combined with my dose of Covid meant the only run I’d done in 10 weeks was the Celtman run.
If this all sounds like excuses for a rubbish time then it is! It wasn’t because I’ve been lazy in the last month and only watched TV and drank beer. Honest.
The less said about the run the better.
Finish
As per usual the food at the end was top quality. delicious soups, sandwiches and cakes.
At the prize giving it was a surprise to discover that three members of my tri club had won a prize. The only person not to get one? Me!
The route was a new improved Toddman route featuring an altered bike and swim course than the 2020 version.
Swim
We started with a 1km swim in Carron Valley Reservoir. There is no set route so I did some 200m laps back and forth until I hit the race distance. Even though Andrew started five minutes before me, I still finished before him.
I think our GPS watches have very different ideas about how far 1Km is. I’ve noticed even if I swim, bike or run right next to him we will often have very different distances logged.
But in this instance I’m sure my watch was 100% accurate and therefore I declare myself the winner of the Swim leg. 1-0 to Iain.
Bike
The new bike route comprises a climb of Crow Road and Tak Me Doon. Which we have renamed Todd Me Doon. The fastest to the top of both climbs would be declared Todd of the Mountains and he would be awarded the Polka Todd Jersey.
Andrew beat me to the top of both climbs.
BUT I let him win. I had a camera with me as I was filming the competition as we did it. Did Chris Froome have to film his own Tour De France wins? No! Someone did it for him. I lost all the time having to cycle slowly so that I could get Andrew in the shot. If I’d cycled at my normal pace he’d have been left behind and I wouldn’t have had any shots of him.
That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it.
I think, even though he came first, I should be declared the winner. 2-0 to Iain.
Run
The last leg was an out and back run to the Summit of Meikle bin. I knew from the start of the run that I would win. Each time I pushed the pace a bit faster Andrew would struggle. I was feeling great so I was confident I’d outpace him at the end.
With 1KM to go. Andrew’s shoe lace came undoe. He claims he shouted at me “Hey, wait a sec, I need to tie my shoelace!”
All I heard him say was “Hey Champ, run on. You deserve the win. You truly are Toddman!”
Who knows who was correct? All I can say is “I am Toddman !”
Although it has got a little bit busier. Previously, I did not see anyone swimming here but on my last couple of visits there has been at least one other group swimming.
Its a great sport for a quick dip within easy access of Stornoway.
REVIEW
Ease of Access: There is a car park next to the beach (by the pier)
Water quality: The water was clear and I could see a good distance under the water.
Swim Quality: 12C in August. You can swim from one beach to another just a few hundred meters away along the coast. The Pier blocks the worst of the waves. It was flat calm during my visit.
Other People: There was another couple of swimmers splashing about.
Would I go back: Yes. Nice spot for a swim and easy to access.
When you turn up at a race and accidentally pose for a picture dressed as a traffic light!
Someways, I do a race and think “wow, that was great. It felt really easy. I could have carried on all day”
Other days I think “Please God make this stop. I hate every second of this”
The Hebrides triathlon was a “make this stop” day. It was entirely my own fault that I felt like this!
Swim (36min 46 sec)
The swim is usually in a Loch but due to the presence of Blue-Green algae the organisers wisely moved it to the sea instead.
Normally I love swimming in the sea. The clear water is much more enjoyable than a peaty dark loch. Unfortunately. I made a mistake when choosing my swim googles. I wore tinted lenses. It was an overcast day and the tinted lenses made it seem even more overcast. I could barely see my nose let alone the course markers.
My sighting was so poor I swam 1800m instad of 1500m!
Even worse than that – Andrew beat me.
I should have brought the correct googles.
Bike (1hr 22 min)
The bike course is an out and back route to the Callanish Stones. It was an undulating route with a strong head wind on parts of it.
Andrew is a better cyclist than me so I knew I wouldn’t catch him on this section. I hadn’t ridden my TT bike in a year. I struggled to get comfortable on the bars. It wasn’t an enjoyable ride.
I should have done some test rides before the race.
Run (1hr 03min 02 sec)
I injured my foot a couple of weeks before the race. I debated whether to start the run or not. I wasn’t sure my foot could handle the race.
I decided that I didn’t want a DNF against my name so I decided to start but walk whenever my foot felt like it might be sore. I quickly realized it was ok on flat sections of the course but sore on up or downhill parts.
There wasn’t many flat sections!
I should have walked all of it so that my foot wasn’t sore
Overall. (3hr 10min 12s)
I was happy to finish!
It is a great, friendly race with a great selection of food available at the end. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to combine a trip to the Hebrides with a scenic challenging race.
A few years ago a local man met aged rock god and ex-Led Zeppelin front-man Robert Plant in a bar in Tarbert on the Isle of Harris and asked him what he was doing there.
Robert Plant said he was there to look at Amhuinnsuidhe Castle. It was for sale and he was interested. The local looked at him and said “What do you do to be able to afford a place like that?” The world famous rock start said, “I play music and I was in a band when I was younger”
AMHUINNSUIDHE CASTLE
The local replied, “did you play the sea angling club? I thought I recognised you!”
Robert Plant didn’t buy the castle. I suspect the main road that passes the front door of the castle put him off. The castle is a dramatic backdrop on the way to Huisnis beach who can only dream of living the downton abbey lifestyle!
What the picture doesn’t show is that there are some normal houses just out of shot. So I might not be able to afford a castle but one day I might be able to buy the smaller place and get the same view.
REVIEW
Ease of Access:
⭐⭐
Rating: 2 out of 5.
There is a car park next to the beach. There are toilets and other facilities which are normally open but at the time I visited (July 2020) they were closed due to Covid.
The road to the beach is single track, very hilly and lots of bends. It will take much longer than you think to drive it as its difficult to see any oncoming traffic. On the bright side – the scenery is stunning.
I watched the Gaelic news and discovered there is a Gaelic pronunciation of “coronavirus” – it is “coróinvíreas.” But they haven’t changed “self-isolate” they pronounce it as “self-isolate.” it is surprising nobody has invented that Gaelic term as there is nothing more self isolating than a wet and windy day in Lewis.
My first school in Lewis was Point Primary. I don’t remember much about it as I was only there for a year before moving to the larger Primary in Stornoway.
Babyle beach is just along the road from my first School.
The School had been knocked down and replaced by a new building so I wasn’t able to see anything that would jog my memory about my time there.
It was whilst living down here that Andrew and I got two sheep as pets. They were called Donald and Shona.
A sheep is not a particularly good pet. It does not respond to commands. Donald would not fetch, sit or wait. He would only eat grass and baa’d occasionally. Shona was no better. She never once responded to her name and showed complete indifference to us as owners.
One day we came home and the sheep were gone. Mum said they ‘d gone to a better place where they’d be happier. In later life she admitted the better place was my uncles’ belly! He chopped them up to eat them.
REVIEW
Ease of Access: There is a car park next to the beach (by the pier)
Water quality: The water was clear and I could see a good distance under the water.
Swim Quality: 12.3C in June. You can swim from one beach to another just a few hundred meters away along the coast. The Pier blocks the worst of the waves. It was flat calm during my visit.
Other People: There was one couple sitting on the beach having their breakfast. Which was impressive as it wasn’t that warm a day and there was light rain.
Would I go back: Yes. Nice spot for a swim and easy to access.
The name Lake of Menteith is a mistake by a cartographer. It was originally called Laich o Menteith, where “laich” simply means “low place”.
Which is very apt because when I went the water was very low.
It is not the only lake in Scotland (as I thought) there are also lakes in Fife (Raith Lake) and Sutherland (Lake Louise)
I took advantage of some nice weather to pay a visit to the lake. I wasn’t the only one with that idea. the place was mobbed. Finding somewhere to park was very difficult but luckily I managed to get a spot close enough to walk to the water easily.
The water level was low and I could easily walk out 30m without going under. There wasn’t anyone else swimming but there was a number of boats and fishermen about.
REVIEW
Ease of Access: There is a car park on the B road by the east of the lake. It is currently closed due to lockdown (June 2020) but may by open when you are reading this.
Water quality: The water was low and the lake is shallow. I’d check carefully for blue green algae before swimming. It was fine in early summer when I visited but I prefer deeper water to be safe.
Swim Quality: Hot! 20C in the water. I could have had a bath in it.
Other People: Fishermen and some kayakers. It seemed a popular busy place. I prefer quieter spots.
Would I go back: No. It was fine for a one off swim but I would only go back if I was passing by for another reason (ie post biking or running)
Last year I went to the Scottish Winter Swimming Championship. It was a great event full of nice people and good energy.
I vowed I would do it this year. I trained for it until Xmas and by swimming outdoors regularly I had become comfortable in 8C water.
Since then I’ve not had a chance to swim outdoors (for various reasons – see previous blogs)
The event is this weekend (7th March) so I decided I should test whether I could do it?. The answer was a very clear no! The water temperature was 3.6C. I struggled to get my face in the water. My hands and feet were ok but my body tensed up too much whenever my face got close to the cold water.
It took me 5 minutes to do 100m!
My face didn’ look great after the cold water. I hope this was because of the cold water and that I don’t look this rough all the time!
I realise it would be stupid to do the event. If it takes me that long to do 50m in a wet-suit then I wouldn’t stand a chance without it. I’ll aim for next year instead.
The training hasn’t gone to waste. Previously, I struggled to go in the water when the water temperature dropped below 13C but I can now get in at 3.6C.
The race numbers for Celtman have been revealed. I got 230 and Andrew has 231.
According to the Todd book of numerology numbers are the God of triathlon’s way of sending a message to athletes. Each number is associated with specific letters. The number 230 is associated with the letters N, E, W, N, R, and I. The number 231 is associated with R, E, L, S, O
I wonder what the letters reveal?
In a shock twist to this years event there is a third Todd.
There is a real danger that neither Andrew or I will be fastest Todd. Although slowest Todd is still likely to be one of us.
We are not even the most Todd person there. That honor goes to Todor Todorov.
Twin brothers swimming, cycling and running in Scotland 