The Michelob ULTRA London Triathlon - Olympic Distance - TriathlonOlympic


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London, England
United Kingdom
27C / 81F
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 36m 7s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = M: 30-35
Age Group Rank = 240/469
Pre-race routine:

Went to the venue the day before to check out things like transition in and outs, get some free stuff, meet up with a couple of othe BTers - Graycat and HannahS. I think I wandered around a little too long (four hours?) and that wasn't the best preperation for the old legs.

Was good to meet up with the other two though - Hannah has the most impressive teeth I have ever seen - I'm glad she wasn't in my wave they must have blinded everyone!! Graycat and his brother were staying over at my house so we headed back. Managed to get to bed by about 9.30pm which, given my 4am alarm call, was still a little later than I would have liked - had a broken sleep too but hey ho.
Event warmup:

Was up at 4am, made some porridge, had a coffee, drunk some water and headed down to the event. My warm-up was non-existent. So far I've treated the swim as a warm up but I need to give this part a little more attention.

Got a bit of a buzz from the bloke in the swim 'pen' telling us we were about to take part in the "biggest triathlon in the world" - cool.
Swim
  • 28m 24s
  • 1500 meters
  • 01m 53s / 100 meters
Comments:

The sun was coming up on the horizon of the 'out' part. That and the number of people in the wave made the swim really hard. I pretty much picked the A line to the first buoy but it was such a massive bun fight the whole way! There seemed to be arms, legs, heads and torsos everywhere and people swimming in all directions. It slowed me down and cost a lot of energy. I couldn't see the buoy for the sun. For some reason I was breathing every stroke which didn't help my navigation, there was just no opportunity to get my head down and into a rhythm. At the buoy I intended to go wide but found myself sucked into the scrum and I reckon I could have pulled myself up and walked round it on other peoples bodies if I'd have tried! Made another mistake swimming on the 'back' part which was to stick to the A line to the exit. So did everyone else and the last 500m was fighting, avoiding and hacking my way past and over people. I took a couple of big elbows in the face and thought I'd broken my fingers when I copped a foot from someone doing breaststroke but all well in the end. Would have expected to swim 3 minutes quicker.
What would you do differently?:

Take a route of less resistance. Be more 'positive' (that should probably say 'aggressive' when in a crowd. Be prepared to change plans if things don't do as expected.
Transition 1
  • 04m 11s
Comments:

Was quite happy with this. The transition area is massive. Nothing short of an aircraft hanger with room for 8,000 bikes! But I got my wetsuit off quick and felt like I was running pretty fast to the bike, got all my gear on and run off pretty swift too. Took a slug of red bull energy drink.
What would you do differently?:

Running was perhaps hindered by having my shoes on so I might try and give the old 'shoes on pedals' routine a go.
Bike
  • 1h 08m 47s
  • 23 miles
  • 20.06 mile/hr
Comments:

My legs didn't feel A1 from the start here and I wonder if that's not to do with too much walking the day before. That said, my average speed is up where I'd expect it to be but this is a flat course so I think it should be faster. Not much to say here - the course, dare I say, was a little dull and I think my concentration might have wandered a bit. I need to work on my technique of climbing slopes and hills - I seem to lose ground on lots of people whenever an incline is involved - not because there's nothing in my legs to give - I think it's gear selection.

Saw lots of punctures and a two wipes outs at thinner parts of the course

Took on and energy gel at 15 minutes and two caffeine based energy gels at 30 mins and 1hr. In between I sipped some water.
What would you do differently?:

For next time: get aero bars and work on aero position. Improve technique on slopes / hills. Maintain concentration.
Transition 2
  • 02m 20s
Comments:

Pretty happy with this.
What would you do differently?:

For next time I might look into this 'riding with feet on shoes' and 'jumping off moving bike' lark but.
Run
  • 52m 28s
  • 6.09 miles
  • 08m 37s  min/mile
Comments:

The run was tough. Straight off the bike people started to stream past me which was pretty disconcerting but I just tried to ignore it and run my race. I know I'm not a good runner. After about 15 minutes I saw Graycats brother who started in the wave before me and I managed to get up level to him and hang on to his pace until the last half a mile. I walked briefly to take on water and pour it over my head and run through the showers. Given the calf problems I've been having I couldn't have done anymore than grit my teeth and give it all I had which I did - there was nothing left for a sprint finish
What would you do differently?:

Not much I could have done on the day but I'm confident my run will improve dramatically with consistent training and the incorporation of more brick work.
Post race
Warm down:

Was on the brink of collapse at the finish. Had a bottle of gatorade, wandered out to the atrium and sat down with my family. Managed to get some food down, don't remember what it was and then went to collect my stuff from transition. Went for a massage.

Stayed around for the rest of the day watching the elites (awesome athletes), saw Hannah finish and then my mate who went round 2mins 54secs quick than I did (grrr). Although we're both chuffed with our overall times.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Swim: picking the wrong line

Bike: losing concentration and poor hill technique

Run: not enough brick practice and consistent run training.

Event comments:

A better race for athletes than spectators. Not sure this'll be on the calender for next year but I'm glad I took part in the biggest triathlon in the world!




Last updated: 2006-08-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:28:24 | 1500 meters | 01m 53s / 100meters
Age Group: 130/469
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Suit: Orca S1
Course: Straight out at back. 400 in the wave start.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Below average
T1
Time: 04:11
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:08:47 | 23 miles | 20.06 mile/hr
Age Group: 201/469
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Heart rate was fairly steady at 167 but drifted down from a starting point of 172
Wind: None
Course: Pretty flat - undulating in places.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:20
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:52:28 | 06.09 miles | 08m 37s  min/mile
Age Group: 347/469
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Averaged 177 which is right up there.
Course: Pan flat except for a slope into the main centre
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3