Mountain Lakes Triathlon - Triathlon


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Guntersville, Alabama
United States
Team Magic
70F / 21C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 43m 43s
Overall Rank = 35/78
Age Group = Young Athena
Age Group Rank = 2/6
Pre-race routine:

Up at 4:30. Ate a Zone Bar. Out the door by 5. Drank a Diet Mountain Dew, ate 2 bananas, and took 2 Midol on the way. I've always gotten lucky with my TOM and was pretty annoyed that I was on Day 2 for this race. Was a little nervous about how that would play out as far as BMs and cramping. Arrived at 6. One of the first people there. I just like to get there really early when I don't have time to get the packet the night before. Put all my numbers on everything. Set up transition. Got marked. Ate another Zone Bar. Drank some water. Made sure I really knew where my spot was. Went and checked out the water situation. Since I sliced my food open on a rock one year, I wanted to avoid that this year. No huge sharp rocks in the path, so I was good to go. Hung out with the hubs for a while. Took a GU about 7:00. Total I BM'ed 4X. Not terrible, but not as awesome as last race. Finally it was time to line up and GO!
Event warmup:

Dynamic stretching of course. :)
Swim
  • 13m 23s
  • 600 yards
  • 02m 14s / 100 yards
Comments:

I wore my dark goggles, didn't get freaked out by the TONS of seaweed. I didn't feel like I navigated well. I kept wondering over to the right for some reason. Dolphin dives in, a bit of meandering, a few breaststrokes around each of the buoys. Managed to navigate better on the way back in. Also, managed to draft a bit. Yea! I did notice that my shorts were too big. Haha. They were getting slowly pulled down by the water. I was sagging by the time I got in. I did some sort of half-dolphin kick things at the end. Then ran up to transition while pulling my shorts back up. Top 29%.
What would you do differently?:

Site better and time to get some smaller shorts!
Transition 1
  • 01m 58s
Comments:

Smooth T1. Straight to my bike. Shoes on in transition. Ran out then got on bike. No issues. Top 26%

Oh, and coming up through transition, I saw my babies! They were yelling "Go Mommy!!" Ah! Love it!
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Bike
  • 55m 33s
  • 16.2 miles
  • 17.50 mile/hr
Comments:

I admit I was a bit nervous for this bike ride. The last time I did this race, I crashed hard and lost a lot of momentum, focus, and fitness. Not to mention how terrifying and painful it was. So my motto for the bike was just "play it safe." I knew I wasn't going to be PRing this course or winning the race or anything so there was no reason for me to not be as safe as possible. I paid very close attention to the road and other racers. Although, since there were so fewer racers this year than any other year I've competed, I never felt even remotely in danger or cramped or anything. Once I got past the first 3 miles, I felt myself relax (that's where I crashed before). I just settled in and cruised.

Note to future Rachael reading this report: spend MORE TIME in aero!! I never have enough aero time coming into this race. It's a very flat course and I can spend about 95% of the 16.2 miles in aero only coming out to climb the occasional rolling hill. TOM came into play in the bike portion of the race. Coupled with the aero, I was getting really uncomfortable and crampy. And even worse, the cramps were starting to really make me feel like I needed to pee. Oh well, I pushed through and despite some whining and nervousness, I had a very enjoyable time on this super fun, flat course. Top 49%.
What would you do differently?:

Not be a woman?? :P
Transition 2
  • 00m 45s
Comments:

I actually did a running dismount this time. I only practiced once before the race so I wasn't totally prepared, but I figured since it wasn't raining, I would be fine. And it did go fine, except my shoe popped off my bike! I had to stop, go back and get it. It's never done that before... usually I have to pry the thing out post-race...

Other than that, great smooth transition. More cheers from my family and my sweet girls. Top 11%!!
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Run
  • 32m 6s
  • 3 miles
  • 10m 42s  min/mile
Comments:

I love this run. It's flat and scenic. I just tuned in to my breathing and my body. I pushed just right. I used yoga breathing and encouraged people. I drank a bit and splashed at each water station. This was a great time for me and I felt really pleased with it. Fortunately, the cramping and need to pee sensations from the bike went away. Maybe 150 yards from the finish line, I saw my family including my babies. The "Go Mommy!" was just so wonderful. I waved and smiled. Then I kicked in for a hard sprint finish! Top 65%
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. This run was perfect. Future Rachael: remember yoga breathing and pushing right to the top of your limit without killing over too early. I did great!
Post race
Warm down:

Hugging my babies who were so happy to see me. Chatting with the fam. Stretching. A bit of food. A jump in the pool. Slow awards ceremony but sweet swag as always in this race - towel and $25 Cahaba Cycles gift card. I was SO pumped to get 2nd in this race in young athena!! Then off to Grandma's to pig out!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Weight and miles, the usual stuff. I've still got 40 lbs to go to get to pre-baby weight. I've slowed down in the last month, but obviously I'm still losing fat as my shorts were falling off of me in the swim. As for me with the body I have right now, I did a great job in the race. I'm very proud of myself. :)

Event comments:

I love this race! Flat and fun. And I love the beach towels and tie dye. Too bad they did cow bells this year instead of hand towels. Good organization. It is pricey, but you get what you pay for.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2014-06-15 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:13:23 | 600 yards | 02m 14s / 100yards
Age Group: 2/6
Overall: 22/78
Performance: Average
Suit:
Course: Triangle, counter-clockwise. Course definitely marked long as usual.
Start type: Run Plus: Time Trial
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 01:58
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:55:33 | 16.2 miles | 17.50 mile/hr
Age Group: 2/6
Overall: 38/78
Performance: Good
Wind:
Course: Circular. All right hand turns. Fairly flat. Some rolling hills.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 00:45
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:32:06 | 03 miles | 10m 42s  min/mile
Age Group: 2/6
Overall: 50/78
Performance: Good
Course: Pretty flat, out and back on the walking trail next to the lake.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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