EnduraSport Half - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Quakertown, Pennsylvania
United States
Genesis Adventures
65F / 18C
Precipitation
Total Time = 5h 24m 5s
Overall Rank = 14/90
Age Group = F25-29
Age Group Rank = 1/10
Pre-race routine:

Up too early, grabbed some food and started the drive. And just like last year... got lost. Finally managed to get there a bit before 7am... just like last year. However, unlike last year... it was already wet. Mist off and on while I drove and set up. Racks are wooden grids laid out on the ground - a slot for a bike tire and a box for all your gear. Kinda nice how it keeps everything very tidy... and nobody hogging rack space. 5 bikes to a "rack" - I was with 4 guys.
Event warmup:

Took a short jog around the parking lot ~20 min before the start, then got in my wetsuit and ready to go.
Swim
  • 35m 53s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 42s / 100 yards
Comments:

Felt like there was a little bit of chop when we were heading in on the last leg of the triangle, but not too bad.... just a bit of rolling around. Went pretty well. I was swimming strong and was getting quite a bit of contact with others, even though there were only 100 racers. Early on had someone elbow me on the right side of my goggle... thank god for goggles! But I couldn't see too well after.... and too stubborn to stop and fiddle with the goggle and loose time.
What would you do differently?:

Nada.
Transition 1
  • 01m 44s
Comments:

Felt I could have done better, but an improvement over my normal.
What would you do differently?:

Trim more off the legs of my wetsuit since I can't shrink my heels/feet!
Bike
  • 3h 05m 1s
  • 56.7 miles
  • 18.39 mile/hr
Comments:

Tried to start off easy, as I was immediately reminded of how NOT flat this course is. You immediately start with a nice climb out of transition to get you HR up. There are a few flat sections, but also a decent amount of up & down. There was very LITTLE support out on the course. All the turns were right turns and most had a police/fire person there. BUT... there was one intersection with a traffic light that racers went straight through... lots of traffic... and NOBODY there! Ok, fine, but the RD should at least warn the racers of this HAZARD in the briefing. And do you really need police at right turns, marked with cones and plenty of shoulder space when they could be more useful at the traffic light?? So... I nearly got turned into a hood ornament there b/c bike brakes just don't work so well in wet conditions. Was extra cautious the rest of the ride. Could feel myself fading a bit on the hills during the last loop, but held it together.
What would you do differently?:

Stay away from teeny tiny races that aren't well staffed??
Transition 2
  • 00m 55s
Comments:

Yeah!
What would you do differently?:

Ummmm... move a wee bit faster? really, though, I'd say <1 min is good. of course being a small race and tiny transition area makes it easier.
Run
  • 1h 40m 32s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 07m 40s  min/mile
Comments:

I felt like I was in a pretty good position, likely in contention for an AG award so I knew I needed to have a solid run. Felt pretty good off the bike and settled into a good pace. Immediately downed my Shot Bloks since I knew I hadn't eaten enough on the bike (as usual). Very nice to have something to chew on since I was STARVING! Hit the first hill and just took it easy running up. Wasn't paying good attention to the runners coming towards me so I wasn't sure of my placing. Hit the turn around and noticed the woman I had passed on the bike was <100 yards behind me. Cripes!! She looked pretty strong so I knew there would be NO slacking off. On the return leg I counted familiar looking runners and it looked like I might just be 2nd woman. Really?? 1st place was looking very strong and had at least a 7 min lead on me, no way would I catch her. I didn't look at my watch so I had no idea what kind of pace I was running other than fast and I was beginning to feel it by 8 miles. Ugh. Can I keep this up? Definitely had to push really hard to keep from slowing down, but thankfully the last mile is pretty much flat. Took a few peeks behind me as I went and couldn't see anyone... good thing too b/c I wouldn't be able to out-sprint anyone if they tried passing.

3rd F finished 42 seconds behind me and I never saw her coming... didn't even perceive her as a threat b/c she had been so far behind at the last turn-around. But she was running so fast had it been a longer course she would have passed me. She ran a 1:25:21 - the fastest run (faster than all the guys and relays!). Damn! And I thought I was running fast.
What would you do differently?:

Nada. Best HIM run ever and not a flat course either. In fact, second fastest run after the NJ full marathon.
Post race
Warm down:

Chatted with the 1st F. A woman in her 50s who has done 6 IMs. Amazing! She really rocked that course. Then grabbed a drink and went to get cleaned up.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Hills?

Event comments:

Nice course, but lack of police/volunteers to ensure racer safety on bike course.

Took 21:44 off of last years time. Swim was ~5 min faster (no wetsuit last year though), bike was ~7.5 min faster and almost 9 min off the run. Despite wearing a wetsuit, my T1 time was faster too. Of course, I really only did 1 month of swim/bike training for last years race.




Last updated: 2009-09-11 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:35:53 | 2112 yards | 01m 42s / 100yards
Age Group: 1/10
Overall: 17/90
Performance: Good
Suit: Zoot sleeveless
Course: 2 loop triangular course in Lake Nockamixon
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current:
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:44
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:05:01 | 56.7 miles | 18.39 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/10
Overall: 29/90
Performance: Good
Wind:
Course: 3 loops (18mi each) on rolling terrain. Some good climbs followed by a couple fast descents.
Road:  Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills:
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:55
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:40:32 | 13.1 miles | 07m 40s  min/mile
Age Group: 3/10
Overall: 13/90
Performance: Good
Course: Double out and back with hills. up, down, up, down... turn around... up, down, up, down.. run around a tree and repeat!
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized?
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3