A BIBLICAL CHALLENGE

Intrigued to see how his body would respond to a half-iron in the middle of off-season, Sean McFarlane jets off to the Middle East for an iconic race characterised by sun, wind and mountains...

- SEAN-MCFARLANE

It's that all important moment in a triathlon where I leave T2. The body seems to just about still work and as I run out on the bright pink carpet, I get plenty of cheers. They're all in Hebrew, but positivity transcends all linguistic barriers and I'm most grateful for the collective encouragement.

My glorious Red Sea swim is now far away, both in terms of memory and location, but the bike course is very much still with me and my legs.

Over an hour of solid climbing, followed by a battle with crosswinds, which for good measure changed direction to face me for the last 30km, has clearly taken its toll.

I've now 10km of descent to run and then a seaside circuit to finish the half marathon. With the heat building, I focus on soft feet, but right from the start, they slam into the smooth tarmac as I try to keep pace with the runner in front.

I've never been particularly concerned about dehydration in January, but I'm here, in Israel. I sip my water bottles more out of fear than, for the moment at least, actual physical need. The early quad discomfort is significant but fully expected and I quickly regret a lack of downhill running conditioning. I think of the last time I did anything like this - a 10km run descent - and quickly realise the answer is never.

My legs struggle but this is not a place where I can in any way justify feeling sorry for myself. This is no ordinary half-iron run course, but it is one very special race.

The flanking mountains gradually give way to the Red Sea, with Jordan to my left and Egypt on my right. It feels like I'm a long way from home, and I am. I'm in Israel doing the aptly named Israman triathlon. I'm always looking for different things to do in January and this certainly ticks that box.

TAKING THE PLUNGE