Wildflower Triathlon - Long Course - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Bradley, California
United States
Tri-California Events, Inc.
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 7h 22m 41s
Overall Rank = 1442/1800
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 220/261
Pre-race routine:

nothing special. for breakfast i had oatmeal and a banana. made sure i was packed and tried not to forget anything.
Event warmup:

No warm-up. No stretching.
Swim
  • 45m 7s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 08s / 100 yards
Comments:

i thought i was prepared but in reality i was not. i intended to get in a couple open water swims but never did. in addition to that my wetsuit zipper broke a week before and i did not get any wetsuit swim time in. consequently i figured i would have to take it easy in the beginning to get the feel and then let it rip. well 5 minutes into the start in my find i was ready to quit. all the thrashing, water in my mouth, and heart heart through the roof i really thought quitting was an option. thank good needs my training told me that i had no problem with distance and i just needed to calm down. i decided to plow through the swim and make the best of it. i must have swam the first 300-400 yard breast stroke until i figure out how to really swim in the wetsuit. i decided to focus on my stroke and breathing and forget about my hips. next i decided to focus on swimming to each safety kayak. look ahead to the large buoys and the turn around was to far. i needed small little goals to get me to the finish. Once i rounded the turn around i figured it all out. turns out that my overall time was not as bad as i thought i would be. just a bit slower than training. pretty happy but upset that i freaked out.
What would you do differently?:

practice more open water swimming and use a sleeveless wetsuit. the full suit seemed to make me not breath well and i think if i felt less compacted by the suit i could have breathed easier.
Transition 1
  • 07m 43s
Comments:

purposely took my time.
What would you do differently?:

figure out how to start with shoes on the pedals.
Bike
  • 3h 37m 30s
  • 56 miles
  • 15.45 mile/hr
Comments:

really enjoyed the bike ride. i tried to kept my heart rate at 85%-90%. I think i did good doing that. coming out of the transition and climbing out of the camp was a bit of an eye opener but it got me ready and i was able to cruise right along. my gear was not all working so i did not know my cadence but speed and heart rate work. i was a bit disappointed with my watch because it shut off at mile 27. i did not realize it until mile 35. i lost some data there.
What would you do differently?:

maybe a faster transition and areo position more.
Transition 2
  • 08m 57s
Comments:

purposely took my time.
What would you do differently?:

feet out of shoe at transition and run with bike.
Run
  • 2h 43m 23s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 12m 28s  min/mile
Comments:

i probably could have pushed it more but i was concerned with over heating and keeping my heart rate down. i kept telling myself after mile 6 i would running continuously. it did not turn out that way.
What would you do differently?:

run. run. run. push it more.
Post race
Warm down:

not much. a little stretching. water, and gatorade recovery drink that was ice cold. very nice.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

blisters on my to pinky toe and one on my large toe. plus the balls of my feet were on fire because i walked bare foot the night before due to the blisters on my pinky toes. i need to be more careful. now that i know the physical toll of racing for 7 hours i think i know my physical limits and i can and could have pushed them some more.

Event comments:

very good organization. loved the race and all the volunteers along the way. their cheers and aid we welcomed and help get me through.




Last updated: 2011-12-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:45:07 | 2112 yards | 02m 08s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/261
Overall: 1708/1800
Performance: Below average
Suit: Full Orca
Course: Rectangle
Start type: Run Plus:
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Bad Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Bad
Waves: Bad Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 07:43
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
03:37:30 | 56 miles | 15.45 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/261
Overall: 1299/1800
Performance: Average
Wind: Cross-winds with gusts
Course: i enjoyed the course even though the 'nasty grade" was pretty nasty. all the downhills made up for the uphills
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 08:57
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Bad
Running with bike Bad
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
02:43:23 | 13.1 miles | 12m 28s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/261
Overall: 1566/1800
Performance: Below average
Course: holy crap. much worse than the bike. it seemed as if the first 6 miles were all straight up. miles 3-5 were the worst. very challenging. the run would have be crap if it was not for all the aid stations along the way. plenty of water, gatorade, and being sprayed with water hoses.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5