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Sado Astroman - B Type - TriathlonLong Course


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Sado, Niigata
Japan
Sado International Triathlon
28.5F / -2C
Sunny
Total Time = 7h 04m 40s
Overall Rank = 222/692
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 26/87
Pre-race routine:

Up at 3:30. Had a cup of coffee and a banana and headed out to my car at 4 am. I drove about 20 minutes to the start point and got a spot in a parking lot fairly close to the start point. I ate some bread and then took my time getting my gear all sorted out. The people doing the near full iron distance (actually the bike is 190 km) were starting at 6am so the lot was already fairly full when I got there.


I hit body marking at about 5:45 and then watched the start of the full course swim.
Swim
  • 49m 37s
  • 2000 meters
  • 02m 29s / 100 meters
Comments:

I spent 20-30 minutes in the water warming up. While I was warming up I felt two really sharp stings on my face (chin and cheek). I talked with some other people who experienced the same on their arms, hands or necks and they said that there were jellyfish. They told me that my face was red around the sting points and to head in to the first aid station. The folks there rubbed some kind of antiseptic onto the two stings and then used a piece of duct tape to pull out the stingers. My reaction was fairly mild. I saw a couple other people who had fairly ugly swelling.

The wind was blowing out from the land at about 18 miles/hr and they advised that the current would be pretty strong on the leg back into shore.

I started all the way at the back and to the outside of the pack and was one of the last people to start swimming. I tried to keep my stroke long and easy and managed to avoid most contact all the way out to the first turn buoy. I moved in a little closer to the buoy line for the leg parallel to shore. The water was a little choppier and I ran into quite a bit more contact as people seemed to be having a tough time holding a straight line. I was swimming with my head up (as usual) so my sighting was pretty good. When I made the turn into shore, it got pretty rough. The current was pushing us away from the buoy line and the wind was causing quite a bit of chop too. Even with my head up, it was tough to see the buoys, but I did a much better job holding the line than in my last race. It would be interesting to know how long that last 600 meters took.


What would you do differently?:

I was pretty satisfied with my swim. I came out of the water ahead of 460 people so I figure I must have passed about 400. I still think I have lots of room for improvement on the swim, but I also believe that I've hit a turning point with my overall swim confidence.
Transition 1
  • 05m 53s
Comments:

Time estimated. They had a shower system set up about 10 meters past the swim exit point so I stopped just before that and took off the bottom part of my wetsuit. The water was nice and cold and felt great. I got to my bike and took my time. I applied another layer of sunscreen and quickly found out that I had a nice brush burn on the back of my neck from the wetsuit chafing (and I did put on a good layer of bodyglide pre-race). I let out a pretty good yell when the alcohol in the sunscreen hit that chafed area.
What would you do differently?:

Not a lot - I could try to go faster, but I am fine with taking it a little easy and calming down after the swim.
Bike
  • 4h 10m 1s
  • 105 kms
  • 25.20 km/hr
Comments:

My plan was to try and average 145-150 watts and keep a cap of 190-200 watts on the climbs. I ended up averaging 149 watts which is the bottom of my power Z3. I still managed to log 23 minutes at 200 or greater watts - I think I would have fallen over quite a few times if I had not pushed a little harder. I was really surprised at my heart rate for the duration of the ride. It stayed down in what I consider Z2 and I debated many times whether or not to push my average wattage higher to bring my heart rate up. I resisted the temptation and that was tough especially earlier on when so many people were passing me.

In retrospect, I think holding to my plan was the right approach.
What would you do differently?:

Given my current level of fitness, no major changes. The big do-differently is to get stronger on the bike.
Transition 2
  • 04m
Comments:

Time estimated. I racked my bike, changed shoes and then ran to the nearest port-o-potty (it was closer to my bike than the changing tent) and changed into my running shorts. After that I threw on another layer of sunscreen and screamed again when I hit the back of my neck.
What would you do differently?:

Nada - at my current level, I think taking my time is the right thing to do.
Run
  • 1h 55m 9s
  • 20 kms
  • 05m 46s  min/km
Comments:

My goal was to keep the pace slow - at around 6 min/km for the first 5 km at least. I purposely dug in behing another runner that was hitting that pace and hung on. At 5km, I turned up the pace just a little, but it was really hot and tough so I backed off and stayed pretty close to the 6 min/km mark. I walked the aid stations and took either coke or sports drink. The 10km aid station had really cold ice water - they dumped two small buckets over my head and I felt good to go. I cranked up the pace and passed quite a few people on the way back in. It felt great - my legs were back and my heart rate did not climb.
What would you do differently?:

Nada given my current fitness level.
Post race
Warm down:

grabbed a few glasses of coke and water and then went into transition to pack up my stuff. It was interesting to be there watching people still coming in from the bike leg and just starting the run. It took me about an hour to get back to my hotel because I had to cross the run route. They had cops out managing the traffic. Once I got back to my hotel I found a TV station that was broadcasting the finish line and I ended up watching that for a couple of hours while knocking back a few well-earned brews and a light dinner.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Only my current level of fitness. I want to take all three disciplines to a higher level next year and I know that is possible.

Event comments:

The race is very well managed and the volunteer support was fantastic. I will either do this race or the full version next year.




Last updated: 2012-09-04 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:49:37 | 2000 meters | 02m 29s / 100meters
Age Group: 18/87
Overall: 233/692
Performance: Good
Suit: desoto 2 piece
Course: The course ran out to the left at an angle 750 meters, then 650 meters across parallel to the beach and back in straight 600 meters to the beach.
Start type: Wade Plus: Shot
Water temp: 27C / 81F Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Average
Waves: Average Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 05:53
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
04:10:01 | 105 kms | 25.20 km/hr
Age Group: 43/87
Overall: 363/692
Performance: Good
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: The course runs across the island (about 20 km) and then follows the coastline around the bottom half of the island all the way back around to the start point. On a sunny day it is absolutely gorgeous. For the 105 km course there are 9 tunnels - most are relatively short, but one is like 2.3 km long. There are a couple of long steep hills starting at the 80km mark -- 150 meters, back down to sea level and then up a 100 meters again. I guess a lot of people burn their matches on those two hills. There are quite a few smaller hills prior in the 20km-80km portion of the course and total elevation gain for the course is 668 meters according to my Joule. fyi: the full course runs all the way around the island - total 190 km.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 88
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 04:00
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Below average
Jumping off bike Below average
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Below average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:55:09 | 20 kms | 05m 46s  min/km
Age Group: 16/87
Overall: 141/692
Performance: Good
Course: 10km course out and back with a few not so steep hills. The last part of the out course is a long slow climb, i.e., it is a long slow descent on the way back.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

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2012-09-04 7:03 AM

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Master
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Sendai, Japan
Subject: Sado Astroman - B Type


2012-09-04 7:33 AM
in reply to: #4393886

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Expert
1038
100025
Noosa
Subject: RE: Sado Astroman - B Type
Great work Dan, I'm especially impressed by your 20k run at the end. Well done!
2012-09-04 7:52 AM
in reply to: #4393886

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Champion
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marietta
Subject: RE: Sado Astroman - B Type
awesome job man!  sucks about the jellyfish.  great news about he beer in the room though

Edited by fattyfatfat 2012-09-04 7:52 AM
2012-09-04 12:20 PM
in reply to: #4393886

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Champion
7163
500020001002525
Verona WI--Ironman Bike Country!
Subject: RE: Sado Astroman - B Type
Congratulations on executing your plan perfectly!!!!
2012-09-04 6:15 PM
in reply to: #4393886

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Expert
847
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Brevard, North Carolina
Subject: RE: Sado Astroman - B Type
Congrats Dan!  You executed an awesome race.  I probably would have freaked out about the jelly fish.  Can't their stings be deadly? 
2012-09-05 9:03 AM
in reply to: #4393886

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Extreme Veteran
668
5001002525
NW Georgia
Subject: RE: Sado Astroman - B Type
Great race, Dan.  I would've been drafting the whole swim to avoid more jellyfish.


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