Fort Collins Triathlon/Duathlon - TriathlonSprint

In May I did the Longmont Triathlon with a 525 yard swim in 14:11. I saved 3:00 minutes here and I attribute it all to the Master's Swim class that I've been taking over the summer. I was relaxed, felt good about breathing, and was surprised it was over as soon as it was. At this point I have done no speed work for my swim, so I'll be interested to see how things go next year after 6+ months of continued lessons and some speed work.

I need to get a better sense for my swim time for seeding. I passed about 6 people and had to pass in the lane a few times as people wouldn't pause at the wall.

Faster than previously, but I would like to save some time here.

If I can eliminate a few steps, that will help. A compression shirt in the pool will eliminate the need to put on a shirt. HRM under the compression shirt and worn in the pool. Not sure if I'm up to pre-clipping the shoes yet.

Bike felt very good and I felt I did a good job of controlling my exertion. Not too fast to wear myself out for the run, but not slow. I was very happy with this result.

I need to be faster.

I had problems tying my shoes. It was as if my fingers were cold and difficult to control, but I was perfectly warm. I may have to invest in no-tie laces. I also paused a little bit to get my GPS working. I need to learn to adjust this while in motion.

Transition to run was not a problem - the legs knew what to do. I consistently thought about adjusting my body position - head up, elbows back. I think accentuating the elbow kick helped (force an upper body pendulum to influence the lower body pendulum). Very little scuffing was heard. I felt very slow and didn't think i was doing well at all. I thought I would end up with a 10 min/mile pace. The water station half way was VERY welcome.

General walking around with a little stretching. Pancake breakfast!!


Overall I was VERY pleased with my results. I went in with the goal to be under 80 minutes (hoping for 75). I wanted 11 minutes in the pool (got 9:54), wanted 20.0 MPH on the bike (got 19.9), and wanted 8:30 min/miles (got 8:00). I cannot complain about the results for my second ever triathlon and my second race of any kind in my life. Having only learned to swim in the past year, and never having done biking or running significantly, I am very, very pleased.

Now I need to temper my expectations for next year, but push hard over the off season.


I would definitely do this one again. The course markings were top notch and the people were great. Organization was excellent. And who can be upset with a pancake breakfast??