Steelman Triathlon - Olympic Distance - TriathlonOlympic


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Quakertown, Pennsylvania
United States
85F / 29C
Overcast
Total Time = 2h 25m 52s
Overall Rank = 15/380
Age Group = M 30-34
Age Group Rank = 3/27
Pre-race routine:

Ate frozen waffle w/ PB and banana on way to race. Pumped tires, checked shifting and brakes on bike. Set up transition. Found some friends doing the race and hung out until swim warm-up
Event warmup:

About 5-10 minutes paddling around in the water. A little drill work, a few short bursts to get the blood flowing.
Swim
  • 24m 3s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 28s / 100 yards
Comments:

Good swim overall. Didn't seem to be able to push quite as hard as I wanted to, but was in a good rhythm. Navigation and sighting was ok - did get slightly of course a couple times and then ended up mainly following one of the swimmers who was about my speed - I noticed he didn't go of course at all, and figured I could get a draft off him and save some energy.
What would you do differently?:

Overall happy with the time. Would like to get faster, but my last swim was a bit slower than this on a shorter course, so I'll take the pace. Need to work on keeping my legs up - I let the wetsuit compensate too much and think my form suffers.
Transition 1
  • 01m 48s
Comments:

Need to work on getting the wetsuit off. Had the arms and top off easily on the run, but struggled to get out of my legs. Had to take a seat to get it off. Felt good on the run to T1 - not light headed or dizzy. Glasses were fogged when I put them on :-/
What would you do differently?:

Practice getting out of wetsuit. Really happy with my mount with shoes attached to bike and getting in and strapped
Bike
  • 1h 16m 46s
  • 27 miles
  • 21.10 mile/hr
Comments:

Moderated on the hills - tried to get up them without increasing my effort a ton and red-lining too early. Felt at a comfortable race pace, but was getting passed a lot on first loop. After third turn around, tried to focus more and put forth more effort. Felt ok where I was at effort wise, but had trouble making myself go any harder. Definite head wind on back stretch of course that made one of the long false flat areas tougher than usual.
What would you do differently?:

Hmmm, given how my run went, I can't be too unhappy with this bike. Just used to being a little faster MPH wise and concerned being that far behind time wise on the top 3-4 in my age group.
Transition 2
  • 00m 56s
Comments:

Good dismount and right into running with the bike. Not sure why, but feet hurt on run in and didn't on run out - felt like I was moving slower. Had some trouble getting in to running shoes.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe try baby powder in shoes to see if I can get them to slip on easier. My Kinvaras have floppy uppers that tend to cave in when you jam your foot in, and no loop on the back to pull on easier.
Run
  • 42m 21s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 06m 49s  min/mile
Comments:

Tried to focus on running easy w/ high cadence and not blowing up too early. Splits were very even. Not good at drinking on the run, so basically just sipped and dumped on my head - shoes got really wet doing this and bothered me some over the last couple of miles. Passed someone in my AG at about mile 2.5 and heard him stick right with me. He passed me back around mile 4 and I let him make a gap of 50-70 yards - decided to stick with racing my race and not his. Gap was the same with about 1.2 miles to go, so I started to close it. Felt like I needed a little energy so slowed and sipped some Gatorade at last water stop. Got to within 10-15 yards going into last turn, then turned on the jets. Saw him pick it up, but he didn't stay with me :-)
What would you do differently?:

Hmm, nothing? A 10k PR by over a minute on a harder course than my previous PR. Could maybe go a little easier over first 1-2 miles, did have one "slow" mile of 7'11: at mile 5 - everything else was sub 7 - but think that may have been as much energy related as fitness related.
Post race
Warm down:

Cold towel, cold shower, light stretching. Lots of club members and friends in this race, so hung out with them. Took my dog down to the lake and let her swim around.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Fitness and form, I suppose. A couple bobbles in transition with wetsuit and running shoes. Just wasn't quite my day on the bike.

Event comments:

Race overall is fantastic - nice course, very well organized, lots of staff, good post-race spread, entertainment and awards ceremony. One area on the bike that could have used a sign or volunteer - on the portion in the park on way back to marina, there is one area where the road appears to go straight but actually turns left - straight takes you in to a parking lot. I had taken note of this driving in the day before, but saw a racer in front of me go into the lot and turn around. As awesome as the beer glass for a podium finish is, I would probably prefer a medal :-)


Profile Album


Last updated: 2011-08-09 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:24:03 | 1640 yards | 01m 28s / 100yards
Age Group: 3/27
Overall: 38/380
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra Vector Pro 2
Course: Sort of an elongated loop. About 450 yards out into the lake, a left turn to first turn buoy, short stretch to next buoy then looonnggg stretch towards marina. One last left turn and to the boat ramp.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 77F / 25C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:48
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:16:46 | 27 miles | 21.10 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/27
Overall: 39/380
Performance: Average
Wind: Some
Course: Two loops on Rt 563 outside the park. Mostly rolling with a couple false flat areas. No major climbs, but a couple hills to make you work. Course was extended a bit this year - usually falls short of 23 miles, everyone's Garmins had about 27 when we checked afterwards.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:56
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
00:42:21 | 06.21 miles | 06m 49s  min/mile
Age Group: 3/27
Overall: 14/380
Performance: Good
Course: Short run around the point near the marina, then two loops in the woods. Nothing you can really call a hill, but some small rises that you definitely feel.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Not enough
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5