Waseca Triathlon - TriathlonOther


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Waseca, Minnesota
United States
WIN Multisports
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 15m 15s
Overall Rank = 67/77
Age Group = 40-44 F
Age Group Rank = 3/3
Pre-race routine:

I'm starting this on Thurs, so I have some idea of what I did leading up to my big A race.
Thurs.- TNT practice (the double). During the day, I continue to sit on my butt. And drink water. Such an exciting life.
Sat. am- Jeremy is over in Waseca already working with Bill, so I have the day to myself. So far, I've done absolutely nothing. Getting ready to do a tiny brick, then have some lunch. I had a bit of a side stitch on Thurs. so I'm really pushing the water today. I just can't have that agony again.
Sat. pm- Drank about 6 large water bottles of water and 1 of GU electrolyte brew. That should be enough for hydration, I hope. Mowed a bit today and went to get gas in the truck, but somehow ended up at the grocery and bought choc ice cream and cookies. WTF?? Everything is packed and ready to go. Took a warm bath and now I'm going to bed and read a boring book. 3:45 is going to come early.
Event warmup:

I got up early since Falstaff made sure that I didn't oversleep. Thanks, cat. The good thing was that I had time to drive slowly and not get too wound up. Snagged a prime parking spot and made my way to transition. I had time to take the bike out for a quick spin, just to make sure the computer was working. Then just standing around and chatting with other TriRoch people.
Nutrition- Coffee and bagel with PB to go; banana once I got to the race.
Swim
  • 39m 15s
  • 1660 meters
  • 02m 22s / 100 meters
Comments:

We started on the beach and although there were only 29 in my wave, we managed to bang into each other a lot. Not sure how that happened. Once I found clear water, I started to drift to the left a lot. Had to keep correcting the whole time. Once I corrected too much and ended up in oncoming traffic. Oops, sorry. After the turn, I cleared my goggles and started back. The return trip was easier, but I still had trouble staying straight. This time I was drifting to the right. It was then that I realized the wind was pushing me around. That wind would surely come back and push on me again on the bike. Lovely.
What would you do differently?:

I wasn't sure how hard to push the swim knowing that I still had 42 miles to go, so I kind of took it easy. Not as easy as my time shows, as that makes it seem that I was floating around on a raft with a cold beverage. Really, I was trying to swim at a reasonable pace. I've been putting a lot of effort into my swim and have not seen the results I'd like. Next step is to focus some weight training on the upper body in hopes to build up my wimpy arms.
Transition 1
  • 02m 48s
Comments:

This was an average T1 for me. For some reason I could not get my R foot clipped in. I was probably a half mile down the road before I got it sorted out.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe hustle a bit more.
Bike
  • 1h 50m 1s
  • 33.3 miles
  • 18.16 mile/hr
Comments:

My strategy continues to be go all out on the bike and this is what I did. After getting my pedals straightened out, I started hammering it out. Yea, I know I'm not that fast, but I feel like I've made good progress and the bike is now my strongest leg. Once I got out of town, I started on my food. A piece of Clif and some Gu20. Picked off a few people and then I was all alone. The whole ride, only 2 people passed me; I think I passed about 7. Along the way there were residents cheering. One lady was sitting on the porch ringing a cowbell. How cool is that? The wind was picking up and I knew I had to use it to my advantage since it would be my enemy on the return stretch. At the turn by the church, there were 2 guys ahead of me, but not by much. The volunteers cheered as I approached and I yelled, "Think I can catch them?" They cheered and I took off. Yes, I caught them both. One was that guy that we met last week when we rode this course. I kept rolling along and having a great ride. The bottle exchange was easy and I took a water, just in case I ran dry. I'd already drank all the Gu20. Switched to gel about halfway through. I happened to look at my watch as it rolled to 1 hour and my odometer read 19.3. If only I could have held on to that. When we turned south, the wind killed me. The last 10 miles or so were much harder. Still, it was a great ride and I'm super pleased with the effort.
What would you do differently?:

Not a thing.
Transition 2
  • 02m 42s
Comments:

This was my first time trying the flying dismount. It worked! My shoes are actually too big, but that means I don't have to reach down and undo velcro. After that, I forgot my ITB strap and had to go back. Grrr. Bad planning.
What would you do differently?:

Remember that strap.
Run
  • 1h 40m 31s
  • 8.8 miles
  • 11m 25s  min/mile
Comments:

Let the suffering begin! Really, I tried to banish the negative thoughts. I was trying to tell myself that running was fun and I was just floating along. My body called BS on that. So I settled for neutral self talk along the lines of "You can do this. Just don't quit. No, you can't sit on that bench. Keep shuffling. At least you're still moving forward." My ITB strap kept sliding and I had to adjust it three times. I haven't run in the heat and sun because we haven't had any of that weather this summer. Ironic that somehow summer landed on Aug. 2 this year. Nice. The heat really started to get to me and I tried to hug the left side to find some shade, but there wasn't much to be found. The wind that had battered me on the bike helped a little, but it was still pretty brutal. I just kept slogging along and finally finished.
What would you do differently?:

My run training wasn't adequate to get me through this. Plain and simple lack of training. I haven't been running enough and didn't have enough long runs. I'm planning on a half marathon in Oct, so I will have 11 weeks to think about running.
Post race
Warm down:

After stumbling across the line just ahead of a guy I'd been trailing, I got a water bottle and found Jeremy. I tried to stretch a bit, but was afraid of falling over. Got some lunch and hung around waiting for results and awards.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

1. Swim- sheer lack of arm strength. I've worked on the technique, now I need the power.
2. Run- training. Plain and simple, need more volume.
3. Weight- still looking to drop another 7 pounds.

Event comments:

Super race! Nothing more to say. Waseca will be penciled in with HOLT as soon as I buy a 2010 calendar. Thanks Bill and Wendy!




Last updated: 2009-04-11 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:39:15 | 1660 meters | 02m 22s / 100meters
Age Group: 3/3
Overall: 58/77
Performance: Below average
19/29 all F Nutrition- Choc gel before the start
Suit: Promotion full sleeve
Course: Out and back narrow rectangle. Standing on the shore that last bouy was VERY far away. We were also swimming right into the sun, so it was kind of hard to navigate.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 73F / 23C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Bad
Rounding:
T1
Time: 02:48
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:50:01 | 33.3 miles | 18.16 mile/hr
Age Group: 2/3
Overall: 50/77
Performance: Good
15/29 F Nutrition- about half a Clif bar in the first half of the course, 2 swigs of gel in the last half of the course, GU2O in the small cell of the aero bottle, endurolyte at mile 29. This combo worked great. No GI issues of any kind. Horrah!
Wind: Some
Course: Big FLAT wandering loop in the country. My kind of course. The headwind on the last section was tough, but it was a great course.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:42
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Average
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:40:31 | 08.8 miles | 11m 25s  min/mile
Age Group: 3/3
Overall: 73/77
Performance: Below average
28/29 all F Nutrition- water at each stop (a sip or two; the rest down the back), enduralyte and gel at the start of the second loop. Still no gut issues. That was the only thing about this run that worked.
Course: My favorite format- twice around a lake. Oh, the joy. It was a pretty run and very flat. Nice safe path, mostly asphalt.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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] 4