Wurst Tri Ever - TriathlonSprint


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New Braunfels, Texas
United States
Redemption Race Productions
68F / 20C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 35m 32s
Overall Rank = 95/315
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 15/29
Pre-race routine:

Woke up early around 4:30 and made some coffee. Threw my gear in the jeep put on the bike while it was brewing. Grabbed an oversized mug of coffee and out the door I went. About halfway to the race I realized I hadn't eaten anything that morning. Ah well its a sprint so that shouldn't be all that bad. Get marked, chipped, and racked and then its just killing time until the start. See a few friends, make a little small talk, do a little warming up to burn off nervous energy. Go through a quick pre-race meeting and bam its time for the swim start.
Event warmup:

Very light jogging and some dynamic stretching.
Swim
  • 15m 10s
  • 437 yards
  • 03m 28s / 100 yards
Comments:

Slid down the big waterslide which was a ton of fun and hit the water. My intial thoughts were "man this is pretty cold but not so bad".

As I am swimming I feel like my form is just terrible and then it dawns on me that I am swimming with my face out of the water.

I think to myself "hey dumb@$$ quit being a wimp and put your face in the water, its not that cold" so I do.

But then I go for my next breath only to realize that I hadn't exhaled under water because of the shock and now I'm trying to exhale and inhale in one breathing motion which leads me to suck up some water.

Again I think "hey idiot calm yourself down, you're letting the cold get to you and ruin your form. Slow smooth strokes and adjust."

Eventually I settle in and get into a zone but it took about 50 meters or so to regain all my faculties. Definitely a learning moment. I had to practice some sighting for the first time as there were bouys to be rounded in this pool and that went well for me.

I hit the end of the spring fed pool and get out and jog/walk (no running allowed) probably another 100 meters to the olympic pool which is much warmer and a welcome sight.

The last 250 meters went pretty well. I got passed once and passed about 6 or 7 people here. Overall I am pretty happy with the swim performance other than the freak out at the beginning. I'm still a newbie swimmer so I have a lot of room for improvement.
What would you do differently?:

Practice swimming so that my stroke technique is more natural and doesn't fall apart when something goes awry.
Transition 1
  • 01m 31s
Comments:

Off with the cap and goggles on with the helmet and shoes and out the gate I go. All things considered it was pretty good.
What would you do differently?:

I'm gonna practice the whole flying mount shoes on the bike thing over the off season for next year.
Bike
  • 48m 58s
  • 14 miles
  • 17.15 mile/hr
Comments:

Grabbed the bike and slapped on the shoes and headed out of transition click clacking on my cleats. Go to mount up on the bike only to realize I've thrown the chain. Had to do a quick wrench on my bike and then I'm ready.

About a quarter mile out of transition is a right turn up a killer hill on California street. This thing is pretty steep and really long. I find my spinning gear and settle in for the long pedal up the slope and pass several people walking their bikes up the hill. Thankful to not be one of them I hit the top of the hill and away I went.

The course itself was a pretty challenging one consisting of some roads I had ridden a few times. A lot of rolling hills which many of my competitors were finding to be a big challenge. Saw a lot of people walking bikes up hill before the turn around which is bad because you are going to be facing those same hills on the way back.

Coming back in down that final hill that was such a killer, they had implemented a 25 mph speed limit and outlawed passing on that hill for safety reasons. I can see the need but it still kind of sucked because as a bigger guy thats where I make up a lot of gaps on the little guys who just fly up the hills.

Ride went pretty well for me although I wasn't happy with the overall speed, but I really didn't train as well as I should have for this one so its my own fault.
What would you do differently?:

Don't take training for granted.
Transition 2
  • 01m 27s
Comments:

Got back to find my transition area trashed by a bike that was not the one next to me when I left. P!ssed me off, but I gotta get out of here. Had trouble getting my running shoes on, second time with these shoes, maybe its the elastic laces are too tight. Just can't get into running shoes very easy.
What would you do differently?:

Get some new laces to try out.
Run
  • 28m 24s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 09m 10s  min/mile
Comments:

Started out fast again. Too fast AGAIN. Kept trying to slow myself down on purpose before the laws of muscular physics did it for me. Wasn't working and by mile 1 I was really starting to feel it.

Finally able to settle into a zone where I was comfortable, but I was off the pace I was looking for thanks to the fast start. Alas I will have to live and learn and try again the next time out. Passed more than passed me so I guess overall its a net gain.
What would you do differently?:

Force myself to go SLOWER!!!!
Post race
Warm down:

Not much of a post race, I had my little girls game to get to. Grabbed up all my stuff and out the gate I went. Loving this new sub culture I have found.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Everything that limited me was my own fault, except the chain, so I only need to work harder and improve.

Event comments:

Very well run race. I'd do it again just to go down the slide.....yeeehaww




Last updated: 2012-07-23 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:15:10 | 437 yards | 03m 28s / 100yards
Age Group: 23/29
Overall: 29/315
Performance: Average
Suit:
Course: A very unique course to say the least. Start off a 2 story waterslide into a spring fed swimming pool on the banks of the Comal River. Water temp in the spring fed pool was 72 degrees which doesn't sound so cold until your are trying to swim in it. We swam 150 meters around the perimeter of this pool and then exited and ran to the Olympic pool on site which was a balmy 80 degrees to snake style swim the last 250 meters. Then it was a fair piece of jogging from the pool to the timing sensor at transition so I think my actual swim pace was much faster.
Start type: Dive Plus: Time Trial
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Average Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:31
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:48:58 | 14 miles | 17.15 mile/hr
Age Group: 10/29
Overall: 51/315
Performance: Good
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: Out and back course through the hill country. Some of the hills were actually pretty brutal. Especially the first one right out of transition. A cold front had blown in and there were some pretty good headwinds heading out.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:27
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Below average
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
00:28:24 | 03.1 miles | 09m 10s  min/mile
Age Group: 12/29
Overall: 103/315
Performance: Average
Course: Rolling hills along a golf course and through some neighborhoods.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Too much
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4