Desert Triathlon - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint


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La Quinta, California
United States
Klein and Clark Sports, LLC
65F / 18C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 13m 4s
Overall Rank = 47/524
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 5/29
Pre-race routine:

Up at 5:00, pb&honey, coffee, rolling by 5:25, at the lake and transition about 45 minutes later.
Event warmup:

Just before time to suit-up, I took an easy run to warm up. Between that and the bright sun, this was the first time I've been warm before the swim!
Swim
  • 10m 38s
  • 547 yards
  • 01m 56s / 100 yards
Comments:

Includes ~40sec run up the gravel to T1.

Not a bad swim, but I'd do it differently. I planned to get into the washing machine and draft after 80 or 100 yards, but the washing machine lasted for 2/3 of the swim. I should have known what we were in for during the count down when one of the guys yelled, "have fun, boys!" What a brawl! The black caps in my wave seemed like a mob that ran over each other and anyone in the way. OTOH, my friend who won the ag swim was a lot smarter and swam wide. I love ows, but even I was rattled after 300m of wrestling.
What would you do differently?:

Ha! Swim wide!

Strategy aside, my run and bike were clearly strong today, so it's time to hit the pool and take a couple of minutes off my swim.
Transition 1
  • 02m 8s
Comments:

This was on the slow side for people who finished with me, so I need to work and shave a few seconds. A faster run out of the water would help.
Bike
  • 37m 25s
  • 14 miles
  • 22.45 mile/hr
Comments:

Oh boy!

"Nice pull!" The riders around me were like an ITU peleton. Right after transition, 7 or 8 of us from the black wave ended up pacing each other, and two or three of the guys just blatantly drafted most of the way. On the connector back in, the marshal rode by and yelled, "break it up, guys," but all the talk of instant DQs for drafting was all bluster. After the race, I asked a marshal who said there were no red cards.

Conditions were ideal. Just warm enough to not unzip, and no wind. That 22+ was by far my fastest time trial. The other guys in the pack passed me by the time we turned to the South (once the axles meet, you drop back, right?), but it was just a testosterone-fest for 1st, so I passed the group and thought I'd dropped everyone through the next two turns, but a bit after we turned North, the front guy made the "nice pull," comment as he drew even. So I let everyone pass again, and hung back a few lengths all the way to the park entrance. I had more legs than the other guys, but I wasn't going to ruin my run by getting into a passing competition. Once the road pitched up into the park, I pulled away and made it into T2 ahead of the peleton. Really, there were only about two guys who were blatantly cheating. Two guys were side by side in front, and a couple of other guys hung off to the side or in back. But still.

Loved the bike leg otherwise. Loved it. I was new to tri last year, and did this on a mtb, so this was a quantum jump for me. Felt comfortable, strong and fast.
What would you do differently?:

Good ride, no problems.
Transition 2
  • 01m 14s
Comments:

Here we go! The legs were working off the bike, and I made it through T2 efficiently. I lost about 3 seconds when I considered taking a short cut to the next aisle.
What would you do differently?:

This one was fine.
Run
  • 21m 39s
  • 3 miles
  • 07m 13s  min/mile
Comments:

This was a huge improvement over previous runs. PB by far. It felt just like my practice runs last week, I had a good kick, and quick cadence. Perhaps the best part of T2 and the run was that I left the drafters behind.

Loved this. Beat my goal by quite a bit.
Post race
Warm down:

The usual: a pass by the snack and drink booths.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Not enough to mention. I was hoping for 1:15, and beat it by two minutes, only 6 minutes back from nationally ranked ag'ers. Last year, this would have been a podium time for the ag, but I'm thrilled to have been in such a fast, competitive field.

The surprise for me was when I looked at the partial results and saw that my friend Gil had raced and placed 2nd. I was only expecting him to race on the International distance. By my count that knocked me off the podium, but there was also another fast guy I wasn't aware of, a nationally ranked guy, so it didn't matter.

No limits here except for planned improvement.

Event comments:

This is a really great race, and an iconic SoCal event.

Official results:
http://raceresults.eternaltiming.com/index.cfm/20110305_Desert_Tria...

http://tinyurl.com/4bgfztv


Profile Album


Last updated: 2011-01-09 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:10:38 | 547 yards | 01m 56s / 100yards
Age Group: 7/29
Overall: 88/524
Performance: Average
Suit: 19 Frequency
Course: Out, two lefts and in.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current:
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:08
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:37:25 | 14 miles | 22.45 mile/hr
Age Group: 5/29
Overall: 32/524
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: A connector out to a rectangular loop and back.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 95
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks:
T2
Time: 01:14
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:21:39 | 03 miles | 07m 13s  min/mile
Age Group: 6/29
Overall: 90/524
Performance: Good
Course: One lap around the lake.
Keeping cool Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 5