CaveMan Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Flower Mound, Texas
United States
Dallas Sports University
70?F / 0C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 05m 58s
Overall Rank = 20/426
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 1/30
Pre-race routine:

Woke up around 5 am and ate my standard eggo waffles with peanut butter. Threw my things into my backpack and waited for my dad to pick me up. Arrived at the site a little after 6, racked my bike and picked up my timing chip.
Event warmup:

Ran a little in the grass, did some stretching, then jumped in the pool for a 100yd warmup followed by more stretching.
Swim
  • 04m 7s
  • 274 yards
  • 01m 30s / 100 yards
Comments:

I was slotted as #54 and I came in 54th place; however, i know the timing for all participants was not accurate (this will become a common theme for this race - also i was actually 34 they updated times) as I saw several racers who completed the 275yd swim in under :40s..that's freakin' fast. They had some guy with some sort of PDA and another woman with a legal pad recording start times...not sure how this all worked out. So, my swim rank may have actually been higher than 54, but sounds good to me.

The swim went well. They had a group of first-timers from SMU start the race, which was cool. They allowed for enough time between the last of the first-timers and the first slotted swimmer to start. Then right before it was my time to go they took a 45s break to prevent any bottle-necking. I passed two people and got passed by the guy behind me on the second to last length. I didn't really experience any problems during the swim, but I hear it got rather congested later on.



What would you do differently?:

Other than training more for a sprint distance i could've done flip turns, but I never practice flip turns since I rarely do pool races. I'm also not a huge fan of the sprint distance. Overall, I'm pleased with my swim time considering this is the area I focus on the least.
Transition 1
  • 01m 13s
Comments:

Took time to strap on my watch which probably cost me a little bit of time. I got my shoes on pretty quickly and actually passed at least one guy in transition. Since we were racked based on our predicted swim time, there was a little congestion getting on the bike. There were about 5 other riders right in front of me so i took my time getting on and made sure to clip in properly.
What would you do differently?:

Swim with my garmin on?
Bike
  • 39m 1s
  • 13.25 miles
  • 20.38 mile/hr
Comments:

I was a little winded after the swim, so it took me a little while to get up to speed. Passed my first rider on the turn onto Lakeside and started to push a little bit. There were very few riders on the first loop since I started early and I passed the first-timers and a few of the swimmers in front of me on the first loop. The second loop was a little more congested. The turn around at the top of the hill caused me to lose a lot of speed because it was a 180 turn. The turn at the down hill wasn't as bad because you made a loop consisting of several side roads rather than a turn. On the downhill portions I was pushing 27-28 mph and ran out of gear in these situations. I probably could've pushed it a little harder going up hills but i was trying to save a little for the run. I heard stories of bikers getting stopped by the traffic cops to allow cars to pass through. I remember thinking when I first saw the bike route that they were shutting down a MAJOR road in the area for this race and wondered how this would all play out...very poor planning in my opinion and a big screw up by Flower Mound's finest. I was flying through that intersection at 27 mph and I don't know that I would've been able to stop without wiping out had somebody tried to stop me and I wasn't expecting it. Fortunately, I didn't encounter this issue.
What would you do differently?:

Eventually I think I'll upgrade my compact setup up front. I could've also pushed a little harder on the uphill portions, but this may have compromised my run even more...so train more? This is my second season of tri/cycling so i really hope to improve in this area by the end of the season and continue to pick up speed.
Transition 2
  • 00m 59s
Comments:

I got my feet out of my shoes just fine, but I couldn't get both feet on top of my shoes. Got the first foot on top with no problem, then struggled with the second foot. Once I got the second foot on, my first foot slipped off. Got to the dismount line with one my shoes dragging...complete disaster. As I dismounted one shoe fell off. My dad was right there and I asked him to grab my shoe...not sure if this should have been considered a penalty...i'll check into it so I know if I need to go back and get my shoe if this ever happens again.
What would you do differently?:

I need to practice getting out of my shoes while riding.
Run
  • 20m 38s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 06m 40s  min/mile
Comments:

My performance on the run frustrates me a bit. After talking to my training partner, Jason, I've cooled off a little, but I'm still not really pleased. Leading up to the race I was experiencing some pain in my knee and I tried to take care of it but I was still a little hesitant on the run. I didn't feel it until the second loop and even then it was just a little tightness, but I know it was in the back of my head. My realistic goal was to finish in under 20 min. The official time says I finished in 20:38 (my garmin said 20:58, but I started the run lap in transition, so I can see where the difference came from). I felt like I was running well, didn't push too hard in the beginning and wanted to really pick it up on the second loop. I'll add lap information later to see my paces. I probably could've run a bit harder but I felt like I was going pretty close to top speed. I remember seeing #22 in front of me when I started the run course and I thought about trying to keep up with him but decided to run my own race...should have tried harder to follow him - he had a run pace of 5:55.
What would you do differently?:

I always say this at the end of the race, but i need to get stronger on the bike and do a little more BRICK training. I'm going to begin doing the JC special at least once a week which is a 1hr power interval workout followed by 10-15 min running at race pace or just faster.
Post race
Warm down:

Sat around with my dad and chatted about the race. Talked with a local chiropractor who was the guy right behind me and shared stories about the ride. Ate some oranges and bananas and waited to get my bike out of the transition area.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

EDIT - Timing company edited the times and posted the updated results - I won my age group; the guy in front of me did not actually swim the 275 yds in <:40s.

Not a lot, but I don't train for short races. I'm really focused on the Olympic and Half distances and only did this race because it was so close to my house. It was fun, but an hour of racing just isn't my cup of tea.

Swim- no flip turns. Bike - my climbing and gearing. On the run, not much, just need to push harder and deal with the bike to run transition better.

Event comments:

There were a lot of things that I think could've been better and I didn't even encounter the biggest problems, so some of this may be influenced by the experiences of others. I also realize this was the first time this race was put on at this location, but the organization puts on a lot of races. The timing was fine for me, but i see a lot of things that are pretty suspect. The bike course was way off....a tenth of a mile is understandable, but >2 miles is BAD. Not many volunteers on the bike course showing the turn onto the final road and I know it caused at least one rider to miss the turn. The decision on the part of the cop to allow cars to pass was likely not the fault of the race organization, then again, it may not have been communicated properly that the racers have priority over the cars. Parts of the run course were not marked well and caused some minor confusion. If they have it, I'll probably do the race again next year, only because it's so close to my home. However, I think I've been spoiled by Keith and the awesome races he puts on in Texas...looking forward to Longhorn!




Last updated: 2009-04-15 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:04:07 | 274 yards | 01m 30s / 100yards
Age Group: 5/30
Overall: 34/426
Performance: Good
Suit:
Course: Pool swim in a 25yd pool, so we made 11 lengths.
Start type: Inside Pool Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:13
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:39:01 | 13.25 miles | 20.38 mile/hr
Age Group: 2/30
Overall: 42/426
Performance: Good
My garmin showed my pace at 20.1 - i felt like I was going a little faster than that, but it's probably right.
Wind: Some
Course: 2 loop course with rolling hills and a gradual incline in one direction and a gradual decline in the other. The wind was more of a cross wind than head wind or tail wind and was possibly blowing from the best possible direction with a slight headwind on the downhill and a slight tailwind on the gradual uphill. The race was billed as an 11 mile bike course, but my garmin and several others I have talked to indicated 13.25. My goal for the bike was 20 mph or greater and I accomplished this...barely. I was hoping for a 33 min ride, but that was when I thought it was only 11 miles. I'm pretty sure the ride was closer to 13.25 because there were only a few riders with speeds over 20 mph according to the official race results, which is crazy for a sprint.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 00:59
Overall: Bad
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:20:38 | 03.1 miles | 06m 40s  min/mile
Age Group: 1/30
Overall: 11/426
Performance: Average
Course: The course was fine, the initial turn was not marked well, but the fact there were already other runners on the course made it easy enough to figure out. Ran around a soccer field next to the rec center, then into a neighborhood and along a little trail. Two loop course with one aid station at the turn around but no timing mat.
Keeping cool Good 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? No
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 2