Motor City Triathlon - Olympic Distance - TriathlonOlympic


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Detroit, Michigan
United States
3D Multisports
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 37m 13s
Overall Rank = 62/165
Age Group = Clyde M < 40
Age Group Rank = 3/7
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4:20, ate a bowl of mini-wheats with milk and a banana.
Drove to the race.
Register, setup T2. (There were 2 separate transition areas)
Travel 1 mile to T1, setup T1, get chip and body marked.
Get into wetsuit and get ready to swim.
Event warmup:

NONE.
I didn't get to the race early enough. The registration lines were long, and with 2 transition areas to setup and move between I ran out of time.
I couldn't believe how long it took to get everything setup for a race with different transition areas.
Swim
  • 26m 58s
  • 1500 meters
  • 01m 48s / 100 meters
Comments:

A very good swim for me. I felt strong. I even managed to draft of of the lead pack until approximately the 600m mark.
What would you do differently?:

I should have pushed a bit harder on the run into the water. I didn't because I didn't get a chance to inspect the entry chute before the race. I didn't know the condition of the bottom, or how fast it got deep. I started in the 2nd row in the middle and that worked well except I did get hung up behind some slower swimmers for the first couple hundred meters.

At the 600m bouy I somehow got tangled in the rope that was securing it in place. This pulled me off the back of the pack I was drafting off of and caused me to have to finish the swim without ever seeing another swimmer.
Transition 1
  • 02m 54s
Comments:

With 2 separate transition areas, you had to stuff all your gear into a bag they provided at T1 so they could collect them after and bring them to the finish area. Most of this time was trying to stuff my wetsuit into a bag that was really too small for it.

A lot of people were cheating and handing their suits across the fence to spectators outside the transition area. To me this should have been penalized for outside assistance. To put everyone on the same scale we were all supposed to have to deal with these bags.
What would you do differently?:

I would have brought my own bag for my swim gear. I didn't realize they would let you bring your own bag for this, so I was stuck using the ones provided which were just too small for wetsuits.

I also have to practice running with my bike with bottles in the hydrotail behind the seat. For some reason the rear end of the bike kept drifting away from me. I think it was due to the weight in the bottles. This definately slowed my run out of transition a little bit.
Bike
  • 1h 03m 34s
  • 40 kms
  • 37.76 km/hr
Comments:

I really liked this bike course. It was mostly gradual curves and very flat with only a few small rolling hill sections and one tighter technical turn. I really nailed this bike ride. I am just really happy with it.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Transition 2
  • 01m 4s
Comments:

I thought this transition went well for me. I found my racking location quickly and got my shoes changed very fat.

I left my bike shoes on as I got off the bike. I haven't mastered getting out of them before hand yet.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Run
  • 1h 02m 45s
  • 11 kms
  • 05m 42s  min/km
Comments:

This run seemed brutal. My HR was where I wanted it coming off the bike but quickly skyrocketed on the run. I had to force myself to slow down to try to bring it under control. I had trouble with keeping cool and hydrated for this run. My HR just kept climbing. That hasn't been normal in training, then I haven't done much training in really hot weather either.

I had 3 different people pass me on the run commend me for my fast bike split. They all basically said they saw me on the bike course, tried to hang with me and couldn't. I replied the same to all of them: Thank-you, but you have me now because I can hardly run to save my life. I have to pass out another thank-you to these guys as they really helped lift my spirits during the run.

I don't think I went too fast on the bike, it went per my plan exactly. I had no cramping or wobbly legs on the run, I just had a HR that was way too high.
What would you do differently?:

I feel my run let me down a bit today. I should have been able to go a bit faster. I could give lots of excuses, but I think in reality I need to practice running more. The heat and longer course really took it out of me.

Try not to get so down on myself for the number of people passing me on the run. To all the people who seem to make running look easy by passing me, this is your warning: I have every intention of being a little more difficult for you to catch next year!
Post race
Warm down:

Walk around while finding water and some food.
Stretched and walked. Ate watermelon and oranges, drank water.
Rode my bike slowly back to the truck to put everything away.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I need more run training!!
I also still need more practice with OWS. However improving running will pay off more so than improving my swim.

Event comments:

The 2 separate transition areas were interesting. I think it would be worth trying to find a solution to condense this to only 1 tranisiton area. A few more volunteers might make the lines for registration and timing chips a bit shorter.

Otherwise, a well executed race in a very nice location!


Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-06-25 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:26:58 | 1500 meters | 01m 48s / 100meters
Age Group: 3/7
Overall: 37/165
Performance: Average
It was a long run from the water to T1. My wife says I was out of the water in 25 minutes and change. The timing mat was at the entrance to T1.
Suit: QR Superfull
Course: Rectangular course in the Detroit river, including sections upriver and downriver. (with and against the current)
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 69F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Average Navigation: Good
Rounding: Below average
T1
Time: 02:54
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:03:34 | 40 kms | 37.76 km/hr
Age Group: 2/7
Overall: 26/165
Performance: Good
HR Data might be added later. I have to download it off my Garmin.
Wind: Some
Course: 4 Loop course around the outside of Belle Isle. The course was closed to vehicle traffic. The only problem was that the course was not closed to slow cyclists, rollerbladers and walkers that were not part of the race. They didn't cause me too much trouble, but they did cause problems for quite a few people.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 90
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:04
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:02:45 | 11 kms | 05m 42s  min/km
Age Group: 3/7
Overall: 108/165
Performance: Below average
HR Data might be added later. I have to download it off my Garmin.
Course: 2 loop out and back course totalling 11k, not the normal 10k Olympic distance. 1/2 was on a roadway, 1/2 was on a small paved trail. The trail section was really rough, I bruised my foot during the race and blame it on this rough section of trail.
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? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4