Young Ballito triathlete tackles the iron giant

Standing on the podium after spending five hours running, cycling and swimming in one of SA’s most popular triathlons was like a dream come true for Ballito’s Megan McCarley.

The 21-year-old fitness fanatic put her pedal to the metal as she went up against more than 1000 athletes competing at the Ironman 70.3 triathlon in Buffalo City last weekend, with an impressive finish of 5 hours 42 seconds, taking first place in her age category.

The event consisted of a 1.2km swim (shortened due to choppy conditions), 90km cycle and 21km run.

This memorable finish comes only four years after Megan sparked an interest in the sport, thanks to her father who has also competed in multiple triathlons.

“Watching him at his half triathlon in 2015 got me thinking that this is a really cool sport and maybe one day I will give it a shot,” said the fourth year UCT student.

“I started training in 2017 and only in 2018 did I start taking it more seriously and more competitively, which is when I began more structured and harder training.”

Intense training consisting of more than 10 hours every week over 12 weeks was what was needed for Megan to start prepping for her races.

After signing up to take part in the Ironman 70.3, this year being her fifth race, Megan would stick to a tough training schedule consisting of track, hill reps, 5-hour rides and 5km swims, which saw her peak at 24 hours of training in one week.

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“What is sometimes overlooked is nutrition. Fuelling yourself during and after training to allow you to train at such a high level is imperative.

“Another big aspect of training is your sleep. This is when your muscles recover.”

While physical training and nutrition are important in prepping for a race, being mentally and emotionally prepared is the biggest hurdle.

“For this race specifically, there was a lot of pressure to podium in my age category and to get a significant position in the overall female field.”

“Are you racing with intention? Are you here? Are you racing not just competing? Are you out of your comfort zone?” These are some of the things that go through Megan’s mind which encourage her to keep on moving.

“It is tough, it is hard, it is sore but I trained for this and I am more than capable of doing this.”

Past achievements include competing in the Durban 70.3 triathlon in 2017 and 2018, and later taking part in the World Champs in Port Elizabeth in September.

“This weekend was by far my biggest achievement.”

With great support from her father, sister, coach, friends and role model Ryan Schmidt, Megan is ready to continue training for some tough upcoming races this year.

“My goal for this year is to enter as many local races as possible and gain more experience.

“I am planning on racing all the half distance Ultra Triathlon Series in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg.”

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