Philadelphia Triathlon in Fairmount Park - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint


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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
United States
Philadelphia Triathlon, LLC
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 47m 51s
Overall Rank = 572/1336
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 67/133
Pre-race routine:

Got up about 3 hours before the race, stretched, had a bagel and banana for breakfast with decaf coffee, and then headed down to the site about 1 hour beforehand. Place was very busy and parking was a ways away from the event, so I had to rush to get in before the cutoff at the entrance.
Event warmup:

Stretching. Did not have time to get into the water and had small mechanical problem with my bike cadence monitor, so I didn't get a chance to do anything other than a 1/2 mile slow bike to the transition from the car. Next time, I'll give myself 1.5 hours there to minimize the scramble. Ate a Hammer Gel with water and then small amount of Hammer Heed before the swim.
Swim
  • 23m 9s
  • 900 meters
  • 02m 34s / 100 meters
Comments:

Went very slowly on purpose, as this was my first tri and I've only been training in the pool for 3 months (and have never had any formal swim training before). Started out in the back of the pack on the outside, let the experienced swimmers get moving and then followed after waiting 15-30 seconds for the fray to clear. Spent a decent portion of the race flipping over to my back to catch my breath, which definitely slowed me down, although that was mostly due to nerves and not actually being overly tired.
What would you do differently?:

Now that I've got one under my belt, I would trust my training more and have more confidence in my ability to swim faster and take fewer breaks. I would still start out on the outside and in the back, as that took a lot of pressure off and kept me away from the craziness, which given that I'm just getting into the sport, kept the swim fun and relaxing. Plenty of time to get into better swim shape for next year.
Transition 1
  • 03m 14s
Comments:

Felt good about the transition, although it took me longer than I expected and I was a little below average for my group on time. The water was warm, so no wetsuit, but the distance from the swim end of the transition to the bike end was pretty long. Jogged the entire way, put on my helmet, HRM, GPS watch, helmet, sunglasses, and shoes, and then jogged to the bike start. Used a setup from Joel Friel's "Your First Triathlon" book, so everything was where I expected it to be.
What would you do differently?:

Will experiment with leaving my shoes attached to the bike instead of jogging in them to the end of the transition, and will practice putting on my gear a few more times, as i could have cut a minute out of my transition by practicing more, especially putting on the HRM.
Bike
  • 49m 58s
  • 14.91 miles
  • 17.90 mile/hr
Comments:

Felt very good on the bike. It's what I was most comfortable with in my training, and the race was no different. Course was nice, with a few smaller, tough hills, but nothing too difficult. Roads are clean and well maintained and easy to ride on, and course was well marked with volunteers everywhere. I was able to drive the course the day before, which helped me visual where I was and what was coming next, and that really helped. I had one Hammer Gel in the first 5 miles or so to get some energy and was drinking Heed in my water bottle throughout.
What would you do differently?:

Not too much. More hill work outs and better interval training would have given more kick at certain points of the race, but overall, I was happy with my time. I didn't have my cadence monitor working (mechanical issue on the way to the race), so went by feel and that worked well enough. My time will come down as I continue to train, but this was about 2 mins faster than I expected based on my TT workouts, so i was happy.
Transition 2
  • 02m 10s
Comments:

Felt much better in this transition and was above average in my timing. I popped my feet out of my shoes in the last 50 meters of the bike, so I was able to jog straight to my stall, rack my bike, and get my helmet off and hat on quickly. Then hit the trail running and got out of the transition feeling pretty good.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. This was an easier transition than T1, so other than keeping up a faster pace and practicing the speed of the actual gear swap, I didn't have any major mistakes.
Run
  • 29m 18s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 09m 27s  min/mile
Comments:

Felt okay on the run. First 1/2 mile was tough getting my running legs back under me, so I was running a 10.5 to 11 min mile. Once I settled in, I was able to stay steady around 9:30-10:00 min miles. The route definitely got hot out in the sun, but it's a straight shot and was well marked, so you knew where you were in the course and how much further to go.
What would you do differently?:

More training on longer distances for the run would have helped. i never really did more than the total distance of 3 miles, so although I was comfortable, I could have pushed it harder by having a stronger kick, but I didn't have the confidence to go any faster than I was running. I probably should have taken a second gel at the end of the bike in order to have more energy as well. However, since this was my first Tri, I was focused more on finishing and was just happy to get to the end, so the run was fine. Average, but around the speed I expected.
Post race
Warm down:

Didn't do much of a warm down. Simple stretching walking around covered my cool down. Should have spent another 10-20 minutes on this, as I felt it the next day. i also took several days off immediately following the race, which was also a mistake. I didn't need to push hard or go far, but I should have done something to keep the blood flowing and reduce the soreness from the race.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nerves and the fact that this was my first race. I could have cut 4-5 minutes off of my time with more confidence in the water and more practice in T1 Experience Overall, my time was ahead of my goal, so I was happy with how things went, but I'll start earlier next season with my training so that I can have more confidence going into the race.

Event comments:

My goal was to get under 2:00 hrs and my stretch goal was 1:40 hrs, so in the end, I was happy with 1:47. It was my first Tri, so by definition, everything was a PR, and it should only go up from here. Overall, it was a fun day and I've have already signed up for my second one later this season (Olympic distance). I'll do the Philly Tri again next year, probably sticking with the Sprint distance as a good way to start the season off and to see if I can improve my time significantly or not.




Last updated: 2010-01-02 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:23:09 | 900 meters | 02m 34s / 100meters
Age Group: 82/133
Overall: 133/1336
Performance: Below average
Suit: Trisuit
Course: 900 meter swim out, under bridge and back. Against the slight current upstream and with it back to finish, but it was barely noticeable.
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 84F / 29C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:14
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:49:58 | 14.91 miles | 17.90 mile/hr
Age Group: 47/133
Overall: 388/1336
Performance: Good
Min HR: 150 Avg HR: 159 Max HR: 173
Wind: Little
Course: Relatively flat first 1/2 of the course heading north on West River Drive to the Falls Bridge and back. We then cut over the Strawberry Mansion Bridge, which is an uphill exit from the West River Drive and then our first real hill going around the top of the Mansion. Route then wound through the Fairmount Park Athletic Fields and the East Park Reservoir before returning back to the Mansion and over to the West River Drive and back to the transition area. We repeated the loop twice.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:10
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:29:18 | 03.1 miles | 09m 27s  min/mile
Age Group: 86/133
Overall: 736/1336
Performance: Average
Min HR: 133 Avg HR: 160 Max HR: 172
Course: Straight shot out and back on West River Drive heading south towards the Art Museum. First part was in the shade, then the majority was in the sun until the very last portion before the finish line (next to transition). Water station 1/2 way out in the middle of the street meant we got to pass it twice. The volunteers were greeting us at the end of the race with water and ice and moving people out of the way pretty quickly.
Keeping cool Average 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? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4