Philadelphia Triathlon in Fairmount Park - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint

My swim was terrible. Could not get comfortable in open water. Could not establish a rhythm. The swim leg turned into a grind for me.

Join a Masters Swim club, practice in open water, and practice sighting. I did not do any of the above for my first triathlon. The masters swim will be tough, but it's the only way I'll get better. My self workouts just did not cut it (I'm a beginner in the swim). A friend of mine did something similar to the masters swim and he benefited from it immensely on race day. Have to practice sighting in open water...so much different then the pool.

I think my T1 will improve as my swimming improves. I was gassed after the swim in this race.

I felt good on the bike. Made up some time from the swim. Did well on the few hills on the course. Need to work on recovery time after the hill. Really slowed down after a hill.

I feel like I left a lot out there on the bike. This being my first bike race, I had no idea what time to shoot for. I wanted to be sure I had enough energy for the run. Turned out my legs felt better than I thought they would. Even with my existing training, I feel like I can shave off a few minutes now that I know what to shoot for.

I was happy with T2.

Felt good on the run. My legs felt better than I thought they would going from bike to run.

I think I left some out there. I need to keep track of the number of left foot strikes per minute to help me pace. I can do a sub-seven minute mile on my training runs. However, going sub-seven after swim and bike will be tough. I'm going to taylor my running workouts to have a sub-seven goal in my next tri.

Not much. Walking and drinking water.


Poor preparation for the swim. The effort was there...I was doing self manged workouts in the pool three times per week....but I was not training properly. Signing up for Masters Swim after July 4th. Also, not knowing what to expect or what times to shoot for. I should be able to shave time off of my bike and run by keeping better track of my pace and setting a goal.


Great race. Very well managed.