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Run-N-Tri's "Tradition's Triathlon" - TriathlonSprint


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Gulfport, Mississippi
United States
65F / 18C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 57m 41s
Overall Rank = 30/46
Age Group = W 25-29
Age Group Rank = 6/9
Pre-race routine:

I don't really have a set routine as this is only my second tri. So I unloaded my bike and tried to gather up everything I would need. Thankfully parking was close to transition. Went over to packet pickup/sign in and got my stuff, back to the truck to get my number on my bike and race belt and sift through my goodie bag. Took the bike down to transition where I thought they were doing body marking. They weren't, I had to go back over towards sign up to get marked, not a big deal. I got marked, headed back to transition... problem, my bar end caps fell out, I can't race without them. For the next 10 minutes I scrambled trying to find end caps. I knew one had fallen out a long time ago, the other was in the bike when I loaded it in the truck. Searched around on the ground near the truck and found it, 3 prongs were broken off so it wouldn't stay in. A super nice fellow racer had one end cap, then another guy who was missing his end caps got the ok to use black electrical tape. So I taped in the one that was loose and made my way into transition. It was pretty crowded with 7 bikes on our rack. I started getting my swim stuff ready and realized I had dropped an earplug somewhere. If I swim in cold water without earplugs I get terribly dizzy and that could end my race. So I backtracked to the truck and found my earplug rammed into the sand at the tailgate to the truck. Relieved, I picked it up and cleaned it. Finally I had everything together but just wasn't feeling it.
Event warmup:

Nothing really, I was so busy searching for stuff I had dropped that I didn't stretch or anything. Putting on the wetsuit is always good for a stretch though. I took a quick dip in the water to see what I was in for, then onto the dock to line up for the start. Does shivering count as a warmup?
Swim
  • 11m 27s
  • 586 yards
  • 01m 57s / 100 yards
Comments:

I'm actually really impressed with my swim. I took it very easy since it was my first OWS of the year and I wasn't sure what to expect. I was feeling good about my swim coming into the event but once I saw the course I started to get intimidated because it looked longer than I was expecting. Leg to the first turn bouy was uneventful, I was 11th in the water so I knew I was going to get swam over by everyone since I'm slow. At the first bouy I cut close to the bouy and had a few people bunch up on me. Nothing major. Around the second bouy and on the home stretch had someone plant their hand right on my butt and push me down. I didn't let it bug me. I think on the final leg I kinda "arced" instead of making a straight shot to the finish, I sighted but for some reason I thought I had to go farther to the right than I did, so with about 50 yards to go I had to correct my line, that lost some time. I reached shore and was trying to get my goggles and cap off and pull my earplugs out, I slipped on the clay and fell, dropping my earplugs, and I liked them too. Oh well, back to dollar general for another set. I had planned to run to transition but felt a little fatigued and was trying to get my arms out of my suit.
What would you do differently?:

Swim harder, I held back a lot because I'm still not sure how linking the 3 events together will work out. I need way more time in the water and I know that. I've only been swimming consistently since mid January, but I improved by 6 minutes over my swim time at my first tri in October, so I'm pleased with that. I had planned to swim a 2:00/100 pace so I'm happy.
Transition 1
  • 03m 4s
Comments:

Terrible transition! Everything was so jumbeled together I had no place to put my wetsuit so threw it to the side of the rack, I had to lean my bike to get the seat under the bar and when I did the seat got caught on the bike to one side, and my rear wheel nut got caught on the brake line of the bike on the other side. It was a mess. Then I had my bike out, helmet on but didn't have my shoes, they were back under the other bikes. So I had to put them on then finally get out of transition with my bike. Chaos.
What would you do differently?:

Put my shoes in front of the bike and put them and my helmet on first. There's really nothing I could do about the bikes being so close together. They were planning for 10 bikes per rack, we had 7 on ours and it was too tight. My handlebars were too high to fit under the rack, as was my seat, so I had to lean the bike to get it out, but there was no room.
Bike
  • 1h 04m 9s
  • 17 miles
  • 15.90 mile/hr
Comments:

About 4 miles into the bike I was ready to be done. I don't know why, I just felt like I ran out of gogo and hit a low spot. I knew I wasn't going to stop, I had to finish, but my heart just wasn't in it. Being number 11 into the water and overall slow... I was passed by EVERYONE on the bike. At first it was just the proffessional looking guys on their tri bikes, then girls on tri bikes, then regular road bikes, then someone on a mountain bike... REALLY????? I know my walmart roadie isn't the best... but the engine needs A LOT of work. Thankfully at mile 7 I took a big dose of HTFU and felt way better, just in time to drop my water bottle. I had to slam on brakes, get off the bike and go look for my water bottle. It had rolled downhill, to the other side of the road and off in the pinestraw. With that handled I was back on track. There were way more hills than I was expecting but I just put my head down and hammered up them. I had really hoped to have a little bit faster time, but with the rough road surface and killer hills, and having to stop to get my bottle I'm pleased with my speed.
What would you do differently?:

Push a little harder, not drop my water bottle. I didn't want to blow out my legs for the run and I'm just not fast on the bike yet. I'm pretty happy with it, but I need more experience in choosing the right gear, I found at times I was in too hard of a gear, then would be in too easy so I would slow down so I didn't bounce the pedals.
Transition 2
  • 01m 23s
Comments:

Better than T1, but still not good. My bike went in the rack more easily but my running shoes were tighter than I was expecting so had some trouble getting them on. Grabbed my hat and off I went.
What would you do differently?:

I just put Yankz on my shoes and had them set for where I like them when I run, I didn't take into account that they would be hard to get on. I need to loosen them then just pull them tight when they are on.
Run
  • 37m 39s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 12m 09s  min/mile
Comments:

And then the wheels came off. Ok... so not entirely. I could already feel my right side starting to cramp as I left transition. I decided to keep my pace slow and see how long I could hold it off. I made it less than a mile before it cramped up bad enough that I had to slow to a walk. I felt defeated, and knew that the 3 sips of water I took on the bike just wasn't enough. I also hadn't drank much before the race nor had I eaten well. I took a cup of water at the aid station and drank it, hoping that the hydration would ease the cramp. After just a few minutes the cramp let up and I was able to run the rest of the course. I liked going through the little nature trail, and I actually passed someone, the ONLY person I passed on the entire course. Go me! I even kicked it up to a sprint the last .1 mile to the finish.
What would you do differently?:

Hydrate better on the bike. I think I need some gu chomps or a gel right before the race start because my nerves don't allow me to eat well before the race. I tried to eat some oatmeal but just didn't want it. This for sure hindered me. I definitely need to be better about drinking before the start.
Post race
Warm down:

As I crossed the finish line they handed me a powerade and I drank all of that as I walked around to cool off. I never felt like I was going to cramp but kept walking. I went to transition and loaded up my bike and gear to put in the truck, then went back to the food tent to get some water and hang out for the awards and raffle.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Myself. That's it. I have only been training hard since mid January and I need to put in more miles and more speed work. I also need to figure something out to get better fueled for the race and keep my hydration up. My ab muscle is still sore from the cramp. Oh, and train on hills. The Longleaf trace is fantastic and beautiful, but it is flat.

Event comments:

Best. Goodie bag. Ever. Two water bottles, samples galore, tickets to the water park, coupons and a very nice tech shirt. I'm impressed. This was the first time this race has been held and it was fantastic. All of the volunteers did a great job, everything was organized, the race started on time and went super smooth. I thanked all of the volunteers on the bike course for standing there. The water on the run course was nice and cold and there was plenty of it for us BOPers. It saved my run. This event is on my calendar every year they offer it.




Last updated: 2011-01-03 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:11:27 | 586 yards | 01m 57s / 100yards
Age Group: 4/9
Overall: 0/46
Performance: Average
Suit: Oneill
Course: Single loop in the pond. Steep entry and exit that was red clay made getting out interesting.
Start type: Run Plus: Time Trial
Water temp: 71F / 22C Current: Low
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 03:04
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:04:09 | 17 miles | 15.90 mile/hr
Age Group: 6/9
Overall: 0/46
Performance: Average
Wind: Little
Course: Loop on local roads. One road was closed to traffic, the others weren't. Not much traffic though and local sherrifs were at each intersection directing traffic.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:23
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:37:39 | 03.1 miles | 12m 09s  min/mile
Age Group: 9/9
Overall: 0/46
Performance: Bad
Course: Nice course through part of the neighborhood, up a gravel drive hill onto the main road, back through a little nature trail and back into the neighborhood.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
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] 4

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2011-04-04 11:02 AM

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