Columbia Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


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Ellicott City, Maryland
United States
The Columbia Triathlon Association Inc.
70F / 21C
Precipitation
Total Time = 3h 02m 1s
Overall Rank = 827/
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 43/67
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4:30, got some breakfast and checked the weather trying to figure out how this day is going to end up with the weather. Drove to the course and got numbered by Trish and set up my transition before relaxing prior to my start.
Event warmup:

Sorta just sat around and tried to chat it up with a few friends before they went off. Saw the pros exit the swim and then got ready to go.
Swim
  • 27m 19s
  • 1500 meters
  • 01m 49s / 100 meters
Comments:

Started off close to the shore and tried to get in a good position. The first 200m were good and I got into a good pace. Around the turn about near the damn I got kicked in the face and started to notice pink swim caps (the girls behind us). Sighting was really good but got a lot harder on the way back because the goggles started to fog up (need new goggles).

Got to the island split and focused on kicking to get my legs back. Got on shore and tore off my wetsuit and tried to gain my breathe back.
What would you do differently?:

New goggles so I could sight better. Really happy with a 1 min improvement from last year
Transition 1
  • 03m 39s
Comments:

Took my time and tried to control my breathing again. I've had problems with this and cramped up in my hamstrings usually. Ran up the hill and got onto my bike.
What would you do differently?:

Get up the long transition shoot quicker.
Bike
  • 1h 25m 8s
  • 25.48 miles
  • 17.96 mile/hr
Comments:

Started out on 108 pretty good and was passing a good bit of people. Tried to get a feel for the new wheels (Zipp 404 in the front and 808's in the back :) :) ). Felt good going down the hills but still wanted to ease off it a bit because of the wet roads.

Ended up passing Christy after the Homewood turn about as she was changing and tire. I'm not sure what was wrong with the legs but they had very little pop in them when going up hills. Going down and on the flats/gradual hills I felt fine.

Came back into 108 and tried to maintain a good pace. Zipped off my shoes and got into the transition area nice and smoothly

Almost witnessed a horrible car/biker crash going up Tridelphia road. Situation: Heading towards the turn around for Iron Girl (Rt 32 cross over) The fast 30-34 yr old guys were FLYING down Tridelphia and a mini van was trying to pass behind them. The car was hugging the line and people were trying to pass going up as well as down Tridelphia. The person was honking and flashing their lights like their drive down the road was much more important. Wayyy too dangerous.
What would you do differently?:

Be able to have more pop in the legs. Always wish I could go faster obviously. Kinda hard when you have a 50 year old guy fly past you like your standing still and yet your still going around 20 mph.

Oh... and I want Zipps bad. :) They were a little heavy on the hills going up or atleast felt that way. But man on the flats and rolling hills WOW!
Transition 2
  • 03m 46s
Comments:

Had a hard time finding my transition area to be honest. Took about 20 seconds to find my area since my race number on the rack got ripped off. It also doesn't help that everyone and their mother has the same wetsuit.

Finally found my location and got my socks on. Shoes tied and I was off.
What would you do differently?:

Get shoes and socks on faster obviously. Find my rack quicker too
Run
  • 1h 02m 12s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 10m 01s  min/mile
Comments:

Got out of transition and I felt I got into a good pace. Ran the first mile a wee too quick for my first mile (9:15). Felt good until around the Gatorade Wall. Got to the top and tried to maintain a decent pace til I got out of the park. Felt some twinges in my quads and tried to keep pushing. Once I got to the turn around (double hill) I started to seize up pretty bad. Went back and forth with this guy Jim (I think) for a while. We both brought each other in to the finish.

Got to Gatorade Wall again and seized up big time. Almost like I couldn't walk at all. Took a few minutes to get okay and kicked it until the end. Came across the line with some good speed and was pretty happy with my run.
What would you do differently?:

Run more. I know I don't like running out of all 3 sports. But I need to run more when I can. Run more hills and run more after a hard bike. Run more when I don't want to.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around and talked it up with everyone to see how their race went. Got everything and got home. I was drenched and in need of a shower.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Running was my limiting factor. Good swim, good bike and okay run considering the conditions I had. Still a great race and had fun considering the conditions

Event comments:

Great race from year to year. They bumped back the start times for the race due to the weather from the night before. I'll be back again and again to tackle the course.




Last updated: 2009-09-15 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:27:19 | 1500 meters | 01m 49s / 100meters
Age Group: 31/67
Overall: 67/
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra wetsuit
Course: Circle course in a natural lake
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:39
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:25:08 | 25.48 miles | 17.96 mile/hr
Age Group: 36/67
Overall: 67/
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Hilly course of an out and back basically
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:46
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:02:12 | 06.21 miles | 10m 01s  min/mile
Age Group: 55/67
Overall: 67/
Performance: Average
Course: Hilly route around the lake and through the neighborhoods
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? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5