Colonial Beach Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


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Colonial Beach, Virginia
United States
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 00m
Overall Rank = 137/214
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 28/35
Pre-race routine:

Went to bed around 2130 after an Ensure and kept sipping on water throughout the night. Woke up at 0405, ate some peanut butter toast and drank more water. I figured that the run could get a little hot so I wanted to make sure I was well hydrated. Went to the bathroom, got dressed, watched a little Man vs Wild, went to the bathroom, packed the truck, and headed out. Got to the site around 0600, found a dude with a pump since I forgot mine, and set up the T-area. I was running a little late at this point, especially since the porto-potty line was LONG! Found another one, dropped the kids off, and got the wetsuit on.
Event warmup:

Pulled on the wetsuit and went for a little swim; not even 100 yds. I figure that I didn't need too much of a warmup since I was a little anxious and wanted to focus on staying calm in such a large start. They put everyone that was 39 (male and teams) and under in one wave. 'Gun' at 0650.
Swim
  • 16m 8s
  • 1094 yards
  • 01m 28s / 100 yards
Comments:

I don't think the course was 1100 yds. I think it was somewhere between 900 and 1000. One of the local pros said it was more like 800, so my off-course swimming could account for the 100 yds or so. This would be a decently good time for me if it was 900-1100 yds. I stuck to the outside to avoid the washing machine and had a pretty good pace in the begininning. I managed to stay in freestyle; had to pull up a couple of times when there was someone in front of me or when I got pointed in the wrong direction. Typical log jams at the buoys where I went to a side/breast stroke. I had to start breathing every two strokes every so often towards midway and through to the finish as I was getting a little winded. Last 100-200 yds; I just thought about where my bike was and went through my T routine. I glanced at my watch and saw that I was ahead of my target pace, which made me relax a little more. I was able to catch a draft every now and then also, but couldn't find anyone with a consistent pace.
What would you do differently?:

Site a little better; get more air in my lungs; rotate during breathing more (it's not a frickn pool, stupid!). Be more aggressive and find someone to draft off of.
Transition 1
  • 01m 58s
Comments:

T1 - eh. They had a nice little kiddie pool to rinse the feet off, which was nice since the "beach" was kind of crappy.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe learn that fancy shoes on bike trick, but I hate running barefoot.
Bike
  • 1h 12m 24s
  • 24 miles
  • 19.89 mile/hr
Comments:

I started out at a nice steady 20 mph pace; my age group was frickn FAST. I saw a big clump of riders ahead, but I restrained myself from trying to catch them as I wanted to get on it the second half of the course. After the swim, I figured that my age group was a pretty elite crowd, so I didn't want to bother with them too much anyway. Once I got into a groove, my HR was pretty steady around 170 I think so I probably could have gone faster. I drank every 10 minutes (carried two bottles of HEED mix) and a shot of goop at 13 miles, and again at 23 miles. My hill climbs are pretty shitty. I definitely need to train more outside of base; it's flat as a pancake here. I was able to keep a good cadence and speed on the flats though. Played leap frog with a couple of guys; I would get passed on the hills, but I would go by them on the flats and downhills. I made a couple of passes at a couple of the turns; either people were unsure of the turn radius, or I was getting careless (or needed the adrenaline boost). There were a few groups of riders from the next wave that passed me, and they were TOO close to each other, so I yelled at them :) The big clump of riders were only 0.5 mile in front of me at the turn around, but I think they hammered it on the second half too as I never really passed any of them. I think I averaged 19.5 on the way out so my second half was definitely faster. I was maintaining 20-24 mph on the flats on the way back. Cadence and good; kept it around 96 the whole time. I downshifted and stood up on a few climbs mainly to give my ass a rest. There were a few typical VA drivers on the road that act like they have never seen a bicycle before and act like we are big nuiscance causing them to be 5 minutes late to wherever they need to go. The dismount was fun. I was busy un-ratcheting and un-velcroing my bike shoes and came up on the line fast. I accidentally did a running dismount. Sweet!
What would you do differently?:

Go faster on the hills! Get some tri-specific cycling shoes and use these ones for longer rides. Get a more comfortable saddle.
Transition 2
  • 01m 7s
Comments:

Had to put the bike in a different rack as it was a cluster-f. Found my shoes . . . yaddi yaddi yadda. Forgot my hat.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing much really. It was a bit of a run (30 sec) to get to the rack on the far side of the transition area.
Run
  • 54m 32s
  • 6 miles
  • 09m 05s  min/mile
Comments:

Almost spot on with my desired pace. I am not a runner, so 9-min miles is okay with me for now. The first 2 miles went by fast; 5k's are gonna seem like cake after this. The first two were sub-9, but miles 4 through 5.5 were a little slower; was getting a little hot at that point I think. I really pushed the last 0.5 mile since a spectator said a dude was coming up on me. I think he was lying. I passed two guys at 1/4 mile to go and sprinted very strong the last 200 yds. I did carry my running bottle with HEED mix, so I could just use the water stations to dunk my head, which was needed to stay cool. My legs felt good at the end; I never had to push myself mentally. I just got in a groove and stuck with it.
What would you do differently?:

Focus on running more.
Post race
Warm down:

Stretch. Pizza. Electrolytes. Beer. Water. Cookie. Beer. More beer. Hung out with the RIC tri members waiting for my ride to come get me so I could go drink more beer and have a nice brunch.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I could have hammered the bike more, but was unsure as this was my first OLY (and only 3rd tri) so I didn't know how the run was going to go if I cranked too hard. Now, I think I can get on it a little more and start pushing myself into the 20 mph pace level.

Event comments:

The course was shorter than advertised, but still a flat and fast course.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-04-07 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:16:08 | 1094 yards | 01m 28s / 100yards
Age Group: 19/35
Overall: 100/214
Performance: Good
avg HR: 169 max HR: 190
Suit: 2XU Sleeveless
Course: Triangle
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 78F / 26C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:58
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:12:24 | 24 miles | 19.89 mile/hr
Age Group: 26/35
Overall: 124/214
Performance: Average
avg HR: 176 max HR: 187
Wind: Some
Course: out and back: more like 24 miles though. My comp said I averaged 19.7 mph.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 95+
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:07
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:54:32 | 06 miles | 09m 05s  min/mile
Age Group: 30/35
Overall: 166/214
Performance: Average
avg HR: 178 max HR: 194
Course: 6 mile out and back. Flat and partly shaded.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4