Black Diamond Duathlon - Duathlon

I was completely unprepared for running on hills. In my training, hills and heat have been a fatal combo, but luckily it was a cold day so I only had to contend with the hills. A couple of them were so steep that my heart rate would have gone through the roof had I tried to run them. Instead I hiked up them, which while I was doing it made me feel like a failure, in hindsight I think it was a really good idea. My method for running *down* the hills was excellent. I don't think why, but the people around me were exerting effort trying to prevent themselves from going down the hills too quickly. It was like people who brake going downhill on a bicycle--all that free wasted energy. What I did was use gravity and just let myself fall down the hills, so I ended up passing a bunch of people without even exerting myself. That made the difference I think, and when I was done with that leg, I found out I had been doing a pace of at least 10'15", much better than my anticipated 10'30" pace.

I would have familiarized myself with the course first so there weren't surprises on race day.

I was exhausted after the run so used the transition area to try to recover. I also had to get my warm-up pants off, which wasn't too bad as there are zippers on the legs. I didn't time the transition, but I wasn't in there long at all.

I wish I had worn tights for the whole race, instead of warm-up pants over shorts for the run, then having to remove the pants for the bike. But this was my own fault because I waited until the day before the race to go to the store to buy my tights, and I couldn't find anything there and had to make do on race day. I will have to be prepared in advance next time. I also had a rough time getting onto my bike and into the clips.

My brakes got mud all over them and didn't function well, so maybe I need a different kind of brake for that sort of course? I could also really use aerobars--there were portions where I was flying and leaning low over my handlebars, but there was no place to put my arms comfortably.

Most importantly of all, my bike computer showed that the bike portion was less than eight miles, not ten miles. Since I seemed to be the only person with this problem, I am assuming that my bike computer is calibrated wrong...which means that my training rides this week were off. If that course was ten miles, and I thought it was eight, then my training rides must have been longer than I thought. And if the computer is calibrated wrong, then my pace was totally inaccurate too. Perhaps when I thought I was going a 14 mph pace, it was actually a 15 mph pace, for example. That's cool, since I was a bit demoralized by how slowly I was riding on my training rides.

Be prepared for a flat tire. My road bike is equipped, but I would have been screwed if I'd gotten a flat with my mt. bike.

Get bike computer calibrated correctly!

This was the most crucial moment of the event, when I was wondering what the heck was going to happen next. I had been warned about running after the bike portion, and I hadn't done any bricks, ever, so had no idea what to expect.

I couldn't find my hat! I needed to put it on after taking off my helmet, and I finally found it wrapped up in my pants. I should have been more organized.

This leg was the absolute worst of the whole race. I wasn't surprised that it was tough, but how my legs felt--despite being adequately warned--completely through me for a loop. Wow, they simply didn't function for the first half mile! I really have no idea how I managed to make it until they started working again. The calves were in knots, and my quads were useless pieces of flesh. All I could do for the first half mile was try to get one leg in front of the other. Eventually they started working again, and then it became more of a cardiovascular endurance and mental test. I admit, I walked for a good portion of it, but I ran as much as I could. I was shocked and elated to finish and see that, despite my struggles, I had beat my time goal by nine minutes!

PRACTICE BRICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fell into my husband's arms and hobbled around the event site trying to keep warm. I reaaally screwed up in the post-race department. It hadn't occurred to me that I would be wearing wet clothes on a cold day, so I froze my butt off. Next time, bring clothes for both the race AND after the race!


My clothing was inadequate. I really needed tights. Nutrition- and hydration- wise, I was fine.


This was the first year for the Black Diamond Duathlon, and the organizers did an excellent job. Some suggestions I have would be to describe the course on the website so people know what to expect (I wasn't the only one surprised by the hills), have more port-a-potties, and turn the music off when the race is about to start (the people at the back couldn't hear what the announcer was saying, and it was a bit of a shock when the horn went off).

My results are missing from the official listing, so I am going to have to estimate my times and rankings based upon the information I have. I will enter the correct information if and when I get it. My estimated results seem a little fishy. I know my total time was around 1 hour 19 minutes or a little more, and I can estimate my times for run #1 and the transitions, but my estimate for the bike leaves me with only enough time for run #2 to have a pace of 10.5 minutes a mile, which doesn't make sense as I was completely pooped and couldn't have been going that fast. Well, I will post it for now. It's my overall time and ranking that really matters.

I finally got my results. I ran faster in the first leg than I'd thought. I suspect the bike distance wasn't a full 10 miles, as the pace they gave me fits the time they gave me only if the distance was closer to 9.2 miles.