Nautica New York City Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


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New York City, New York
United States
Korff Enterprises
75F / 24C
Overcast
Total Time = 2h 44m 40s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = F30-34
Age Group Rank = 32/274
Pre-race routine:

Woke up 3:30, had toast with almond butter and heard the pouring rain start. I decided to get to transition as late as possible. It closed at 5:45 and I walked in at 5:35. Yes, it was tight, but I had everything very organized and didn't need more time. Plus the start was delayed.
Event warmup:

The nearly 1-mile walk to swim start.
Swim
  • 22m 35s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 23s / 100 yards
Comments:

My goal for the swim was to gain more experience dealing with contact in preparation for Wisconsin. The Hudson current is so strong that swimmers have to cling to a rope to keep from getting pulled down river. Last year I sat on the barge until the gun went off to avoid the pile of women on the rope, but this year I got into the pile. It was crazy, we were all pushing backwards or trying to backstroke and going nowhere.

The gun went off and everyone started flailing but no one was really swimming. I was right in the middle and had nowhere to go so I just started to move forward. I felt like I was climbing over a carpet of people. I wasn't being malicious or aggressive, but the Hudson was demanding we move south and the only way to get there was to break out of the crowd. It was really rough, a lot of grabbing and kicking, but I held my own and felt pretty confident. It only took a minute or so to find some space and really get moving. I could tell my HR was racing so I focused on calming it down.

Near the exit ramp my hand hit something and I realized it was the mucky silt on the bottom of the river. Either they moved the swim exit closer to the seawall or water levels were significantly down because this didn't happen last year. It was disgusting. I could feel silt hitting my face as the women in front of me tried to stroke through it. You can't stand up in this stuff so I used shallow strokes until the lifeguards at the ramp could lift me out. Those guys may be the best volunteers in the entire race.

I thought I swam really strong but my time was slower than last week's race in the Hudson and fell short of my goal of 21:30. But I was a little faster than last year and I exited the water with a smile so I can't complain.

What would you do differently?:

I need to learn to push myself appropriately in a race. I love OWS and am really comfy, maybe too comfy and forget to push it.
Transition 1
  • 06m 41s
Comments:

It is what it is. There is a 400m barefoot run just to get to T1, then the run through it. There was a line to get out and to bike mount that ate up a minimum of 45 more seconds due to crowding.
What would you do differently?:

NYC has long transitions, nothing you can do to change it, especially in the Yellow area. I knocked off about 2 minutes from last year so it felt like an improvement.
Bike
  • 1h 26m 28s
  • 24.85 miles
  • 17.24 mile/hr
Comments:

This course was really crowded, way more than last year. Add to that wet/slick roads, very narrow lanes at times, big puddles and a lot of people who seemed unaware of basic racing/USAT rules and it was a recipe for disaster. I felt at risk the entire time and was basically trying to ride a good race while avoiding a crash. Not how I want to feel and not fun at all.

There is an exhaustive thread about this in the New York forum and more details on my blog so I'm going to just leave it at this: if your goal is to simply finish and have fun, this is a good bike course. If you're aiming for a fast ride or trying for a goal, you will be challenged. Passing was difficult and a lot of riders got bent out of shape over other riders shouting "left" or trying to pass. There were profanities and nasty slurs being thrown around. It was unusual and unlike anything I've experienced in a race.

I felt I rode strong and did the best I could. I had to ride the brakes a lot on downhills for safety sake. My legs felt good despite the training load leading up to the race. I overhydrated again. I have to get that under control during overcast conditions. I missed my goal by 4 minutes but still improved over last year.

What would you do differently?:

I did the best I could on this course. Safety is way more important to me than a faster split.
Transition 2
  • 02m 13s
Comments:

Much better.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing, this is pretty good for NYC.
Run
  • 46m 44s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 07m 32s  min/mile
Comments:

If I were harboring any lingering disappointment over my swim and bike times, it melted away when I discovered my run time. I wasn't feeling particularly speedy and my legs were heavy so I guessed I was doing an 8.5 minute mile or so. I didn't start capturing my splits until Mile 3 and realized I was hitting a sub-8 pace. I thought perhaps the beginning was slow and I was gradually speeding up. I saw Jonah (jmk-brooklyn) around Mile 3, he was on a bike as a volunteer course marshall. He came and rode up a nasty hill with me, it was a very nice distraction.

My pace stayed consistent but I desperately wanted to speed it up so I picked a woman ahead of me who appeared to be running really strong and tried as hard as I could to catch her. We were in lock step for almost a mile with her about 20 yards ahead of me. But as we came into the final stretch I finally passed her. I felt incredibly strong coming into the finish and knew I had done the best I was capable of that day.

The run was my greatest improvement over last year and it was also a 10K PR for me by almost three-minutes. I was elated when I discovered this. I'm sometimes frustrated by my minimal improvements on the bike, but my coach said my bike endurance is paying off by allowing me to use the run fitness I'm building to fly. If being slower on the bike means having better than expected runs, I can live with that. 16th in my AG is just awesome for a race of this caliber.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing!
Post race
Warm down:

Drank a Muscle Milk, had a banana and lots of water, walked around and saw Michelle (mburkhart), we got a finisher photo together (below). Then found some non-BT friends. Drank a Recoverite on the stroll back to transition and had a Cliff Bar on the long train ride home.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Crowded course. No taper. Still learning to race a swim. I'm getting there.

Event comments:

This is a great race for fun, but as said above, not the best place to really test yourself and push the limits. It's a great experience and the most unique race I've ever done. It's excellent for first-timers, it was for me last year.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2009-07-08 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:22:35 | 1640 yards | 01m 23s / 100yards
Age Group: 136/274
Overall: 274/
Performance: Good
Suit: Sleeveless Blue Seventy Reaction
Course: Point to point down the Hudson River.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current:
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding:
T1
Time: 06:41
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
01:26:28 | 24.85 miles | 17.24 mile/hr
Age Group: 52/274
Overall: 274/
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Up and back on the Henry Hudson. Mostly flat or rolling, a couple actual climbs. A lot of fast downhill. Very narrow, very crowded.
Road: Rough Wet Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 02:13
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:46:44 | 06.21 miles | 07m 32s  min/mile
Age Group: 16/274
Overall: 274/
Performance: Good
Course:
Keeping cool Drinking
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?
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks?
Post race activities:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4