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Twenty five year old Cartmell, who became a full time triathlete this summer after completing his degree at Herriot Watt University, added the Scottish Half Ironman crown to a CV which includes this year's Scottish duathlon, the triathlon Sprint, and the UK Half Iron Man titles.

“The race was possibly the most miserable I have ever competed in,” he said after swimming  1.9 km in Loch Tay and cycling 90 km and running 21 km around the hills of Perthshire in a time of four hours and 31 minutes.  “It was cold, driving rain and wind the whole way round.  The swim in Loch Tay was about twelve degrees in temperature.”
 
Having become a full time athlete this summer Cartmell has opted for a central belt location and is making ends meet from his race results.  “I'm staying in Stirling because it's the best place I've found to train.  It's got the facilities, I'm supported by the Central Institute of Sport and I'm familiar with the area for training.
 
“Racing full time means I'm having to earn a living from racing.  It's manageable but you have to get yourself racing around Europe.  Still, I find a fair chunk of winnings go on expenses.”
 
Cartmell plans to continue mixing his racing distances, giving him the best opportunity to compete for Scotland at Olympic distance in a future Commonwealth Games, but for this year the longer duration of the Half Iron Man suits him well.
 
“I haven't done the Half Iron Man before this year but I've given it a good go and that was my fourth race at the distance this year,” he said.
 
“Winning the UK Half Iron Man Championships in June qualified me for the World Championships this November in Florida, so everything is a stepping stone towards that.  Getting a little more experience at the longer distances in this weekend's race was useful.”