My Way or the Tri Way - TriathlonSprint


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Aurora, Colorado
United States
Tri-Way Productions
70F / 21C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 37m 6s
Overall Rank = 88/384
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 13/26
Pre-race routine:

Didn't sleep too well, kept waking up throughout the night, woke up pretty dehydrated. Got up around 4:15, started hydrating right away since the race didn't start for a number of hours. Didn't eat much breakfast since I normally don't do that anyway, so I only had a pop-tart.
Event warmup:

I stretched for like 5 minutes before putting on the wetsuit.
Swim
  • 18m 45s
  • 750 meters
  • 02m 30s / 100 meters
Comments:

I started at the back of the pack since I had no idea how fast or slow I'd be. Turned out the be a mistake since it probably took >2minutes from the start to get down to the water because the back was walking so slow. So once in the water it turned out that I was actually kind of fast, constantly catching and passing people in the water. Because of that there was no one for me to draft. The slower start for me walking down to the water helped to make sure my heart rate never spiked as well. I tried to do more of a negative split and speed up as the swim went on. It seemed to work because I felt like I was passing more people towards the end than I was during the beginning. So overall in that respect I think I did well, but I know I could have pushed a harder instead of feeling completely relaxed during it.
What would you do differently?:

Start more towards the front of the pack and try to stay more on the outside of the people swimming. It would be good to find some other tri folks and get used to having people swimming that close to you a lot. Also getting used to drafting would be very beneficial as well, it's hard to judge who you can draft and who you can't.
Transition 1
  • 02m 25s
Comments:

Trying to run in the sand and take off the wetsuit is more challenging than you'd think. Having a container of just water open next to everything was great for washing the sand off my feet quickly before putting socks on.
What would you do differently?:

First I'd get a tri suit instead of a surfing wetsuit, I'd also use some kind of body glide.

I'll only towel off my feet before putting my socks on instead of drying most of myself off, it was warm enough that it would have been nice to have fended off the heat just a little longer with the water evaporating while biking.

Invest in bike shoes with ratchet straps instead of laces. My shoes are ~8 years old, and I didn't get them tied tight enough because of being in a rush, so I lost a lot of power during the bike with the shoes being kind of loose. It would have been better to at least spend the extra 5-10 seconds being sure the laces were tight, but better to just have ratchets and you can adjust on the bike if needed.

I could probably do without the bike gloves for the sprint, 14 miles isn't really that long and although I didn't put them on until I was already riding (having them pre-attached to the aerobars) they didn't let me really get up to speed until I finished putting them on, then having to take them off in T2 would be eliminated too.

Bike
  • 42m 17s
  • 14 miles
  • 19.87 mile/hr
Comments:

Overall did great, my computer showed 20.3mph average, much better than I anticipated, having expected closer to 17-18mph. The hills didn't feel too bad, I tried to mix it up and ride 3/4 of the way up the hills seated before standing to power over the top. For longer course I possibly wait longer before standing in order to save the legs more but still carry as much speed over the crest as possible.

I stayed in the aero position as much as possible, except during the top 1/2 of climbs. I even managed to make the 180 turn at the end still in the aero position and didn't lose much speed at all.
What would you do differently?:

Not use gloves for such a short race. Remember to drink more during during the early to middle part of the ride and then not drink anything within the last 10 minutes. Definitely take the Gu in the first half of the bike instead of 5 minutes from finishing the bike.

Get one of those aerobar bottles for hydration so you don't have to get out of aero to take a drink. It makes you constantly worry if drinking is worth losing the aero position otherwise.
Transition 2
  • 01m
Comments:

I think I did pretty well coming into the transition. Dismounted while the bike was still moving. Got it into the rack quick pretty quick and got the running shoes on pretty well. I think the majority of the 1 minute would be having to run to the other side of transition to exit for the run.

Removing the sunglasses and putting the hat on was a much better strategy then dealing with sweat on the sunglasses. I'll definitely continue to run with a hat.
What would you do differently?:

Again, not wear bike gloves. Just don't need to waste the time ripping them off in T2. Also get one shirt that will work for both biking and running and get a number belt. Changing shirts took some extra time and the number belt can be put on as you jog out of the transition zone.
Run
  • 31m 19s
  • 3.5 miles
  • 08m 57s  min/mile
Comments:

I never expected my run to be great since it was what I trained for the least at this point. I had a goal of maintaining a 9minute mile pace and was slightly faster. So overall that makes for a successful run. But knowing what I can do with even a little bit more training for the run shows I can improve dramatically. Based on 5k courses I remember running 10 years ago, I know I can begin running sub 7 minute mile pace on a course like this by next year.
What would you do differently?:

train more for the run.
Post race
Warm down:

walked around a great deal to stretch the legs. Grabbed a number of cold drinks, including a soda about 2 hours post finish. light stretching.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Not knowing what I was capable of doing since it was the first race in 6 years I had done. Not preparing for the run more. Starting so far back initially (again because of not knowing capabilities)

Event comments:

I don't understand why there was a water station at the entrance/exit of the transition for the run. I think it would have been much better if that was just after mile 1 and the second station was just around mile 2.2. Most of us have some kind of bottle or drink at our transition area already, so it's a wasted station at the exit of T2.




Last updated: 2009-07-27 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:18:45 | 750 meters | 02m 30s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/26
Overall: 106/384
Performance: Average
Suit:
Course: Had to run ~200m down to the water from the transition for the start, Swim diagonally out from the beach, around the buoy and back to the other side of the beach. Swimming two sides of what would make a triangle.
Start type: Run Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Bad
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 02:25
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:42:17 | 14 miles | 19.87 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/26
Overall: 40/384
Performance:
Wind: Little
Course: Out and back style, Rolling hills, gradually rolling downhill on the way out and of course opposite on the way back.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:00
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:31:19 | 03.5 miles | 08m 57s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/26
Overall: 126/384
Performance: Average
Course: More rolling hills, mostly on a paved rec path, but some gravel portions for about a mile. Last 1/2 miles is uphill.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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? No
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 3