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 Swim
Comments: Here were the swim segment goals: - try drafting during the swim Result: there is a definite benefit to drafting on the swim, but just like on American Idol where it's all about "the right song choice"; with drafting in the swim segment of a triathlon, it's all about the "right pair of feet" choice. I picked a guy out of the pack that looked like he was a strong swimmer and then discovered that he really was and couldn't stay with him. Then I found another guy who was swimming ahead of me and stayed on his feet for a while until I realized that he couldn't see where he was going and was wandering aimlessly, then I found another guy who was "just right", but he tired as we made the second turn and I passed him up. Decided at that point to just take it back to the beach as fast as I could. Overall pretty successful because I learned: a.)drafting can make a difference (I definitely felt less energy being utilized than when I swim on my own), and b.)it's all about finding the right guy to draft off of; not too fast, not too slow, not too wandering. Finding that guy is probably just a lucky guess, unless I can improve my swimming to stay with the fish at the front of the pack. Overall, very happy with what was learned on this swim. What would you do differently?: Nothing.  Transition 1
Comments: Objectives for T1 were: shoes in cleats going out of T1 Worked out very well; the course facilitates this strategy b/c it is flat. I have been practicing the "cossack drill" a lot lately and felt very comfortable running with the bike, jumping on and getting my shoes on while riding. Happy with outcome. What would you do differently?: Nothing  Bike
Comments: Biking Objectives for the race: - consistent cadence at 105rpm on bike - "minimalist" nutrition on the bike: 1 PowerGel and 1 bottle Gu2O 1 more endurolyte prior to hitting T2 Result: Kept the cadence at 105 around the whole course and stayed aero almost the entire way. On some of the flat sections 105 felt a little too easy, but I tried to ramp up the gear to compensate. Definitely underestimated the nutrition requirements on the bike as I was thirsty by the end of the ride which did not bode well for the run. I think one PowerGel was the right choice, but would have been better to take it closer to the end of the bike rather than just after the turn-around. Tried to take more frequent, smaller sips of the Gu2O instead of my usual "gulping"; this worked nicely and will continue that strategy. Smaller sips seemed easier to digest. Definitely need to take another bottle on the bike when the temp is above 75 degrees. Ran out of drink with about 5 miles to go. Knew that would be a problem and it was. Also forgot to take the Endurolyte at the end of the bike. What would you do differently?: Bring another Gu2O bottle on the bike. Remember to take the Endurolyte just before slipping out of shoes. Transition 2
Comments: T2 went very well; hopped off bike easily and felt no heavy leg syndrome on my way to the rack. What would you do differently?: Nothing.  Run
Comments: Here were the run objectives for the day: - go with whatever I have left on the run after a strong (hopefully) bike - finish at sprint pace for last .25 mile Result: Legs were having a hard time getting into a good pace throughout the first mile and I felt my body temp/HR rising. It seemed to get stifling hot at about the third mile. Suffered through the rest of the run as best I could, but it was definitely below par. Did manage to sprint the last .25 mile and finished without injury eventhough I felt I was on the point of quad cramping since the mile 2 marker. Very, very happy that my calves gave me no trouble at all (no straining, no "twangy" feeling). I definitely felt that although it was a bad performance, I have overcome last year's injury-prone situation. What would you do differently?: Hydrate better on the bike, maybe bring my Fuel Belt to races that will be over 75 degrees on the run. I don't drink well out of those dixie cups, but the FB bottles are easy to sip from. Post race
Warm down: Objectives for the warm-down: Recoverite within 30 mins of finish - gauge leg recovery (if good enough to play soccer Sunday at 4pm) Result: Having a bottle of Recoverite is kind of how I reward myself for doing a race. I love that stuff and credit it with keeping me healthy during this racing season. I could definitley have played soccer yesterday at 4 if it hadn't been storming like the apocalypse. I wouldn't have been fast, but I could have taken it easy and played. What limited your ability to perform faster: A few things: - not being focused on performance, but instead focused on experimenting with stuff - lack of training over the past two weeks (kind of gave up on the season after Evergreen Lake) Event comments: Great race; glad my weekend freed up so that I could do it. Last updated: 2009-08-14 12:00 AM
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75F / 24C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 92/640
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 21/87
Being as I've taken the last 2 weeks off with little to no exercise/training, I decided to do Pleasant Prairie as a last minute thing and work on some stuff I've wanted to experiment with. Here's the pre-race stuff I wanted to do:
get to race venue as late as possible (I'm a notorious early bird, so I sit around doing nothing; I want to arrive just in time to set up transition, hit the port-o-potty and walk to the race start); this will make me nervous, but want to give it a shot
Result: I don't like being late anywhere so this was tough for me. As it turns out, leaving my house at 4:30, arrival at parking by 5:15 and riding the 1.5 miles to the transition area on my bike got me racked and ready just in time to grab a cup of water, get in the long line for the potty, and in the pen for my wave to start just before we took off. Timing was perfect, but the stress induced is not worth it. I will continue to be ungodly early and just live with the 3am departures for the race site, or leave the night before. Good lesson.
warm-up experiments: 1 Endurolyte prior to swim (usually take 2, but feel bloated, maybe 1 is better)
Result: 1 is definitely better; water was warm and probably sweated a lot in the wet-suit, but 1 Endurolyte definitely helped with the bloating during the swim. Will take 1 Endurolyte 30mins prior to race time as my go-forward routine.