Chicago Triathlon - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Chicago, Illinois
United States
Capri Events, Inc
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 31m 16s
Overall Rank = 306/2285
Age Group = M30-34
Age Group Rank = 45/206
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4am, took a quick shower, ate a Clif kids bar and drank water, and then biked over to the transition area to set-up.
Event warmup:

Swim warmups are not allowed so my only warmup was basically biking approx 2 miles to the transition area and then walking about .75 miles to the swim start. I stretched and relaxed before my wave went off. We had to be out of transition by 5:45 (I was out by 5:15) and my wave did not go off until 6:38 so I laid around and stretched. Ate a few shot blocks.
Swim
  • 21m 42s
  • 820 yards
  • 02m 39s / 100 yards
Comments:

I did not even cross the start line for approx 20-30 sec because there were approx 160 people in my wave. I am not the fastest swimmer so I wanted to start near the back and outside. Horrible swim time and trouble breathing and getting into a rhythm for the first 250m.
I felt a little better in the 2nd 250m but still had to mix in a little breathestroke. Caught up to wave in front of me but wave behind us caught me too.
I felt really good in the last 250m though. Breathing and stroke were great until met cluster of people near exit stairs.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe start middle of pack.
Transition 1
  • 02m 46s
Comments:

It's a huge transition area and it's very crowded. Probably a 250m run to get to my bike and then another 100m to exit. I planned on going down wave rows that started before me so it was less congested. Of course you have to run uphill too when entering transition.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really. Maybe run a little faster but was slightly winded from swim and run to transition. Not worry about grass on feet before putting on bike shoes...probably wasted 20-30 sec trying to get grass/dirt off of feet.
Bike
  • 47m 12s
  • 13.67 miles
  • 17.38 mile/hr
Comments:

I was doing really well on the first half before the turn-around. I probably averaged 19-20mph. Maybe I went too hard or it was the head-wind but I really slowed down on the way back. I had a hard time with the hill right at the end (over the river).
I got boxed in a few times on the return trip from participants out for a casual Sunday ride. They were riding 3-4 across and did not move over quickly. At that width there is not any real option for passing since cars are driving by in the far lanes.
What would you do differently?:

Need to train more on the bike! I averaged 20mph on a 11.5 mile course two weeks before this race so I know I can do it!
Transition 2
  • 02m 28s
Comments:

Overall not bad. I cut about 1 minute off of my time from last year here. It's still a big transition so it takes time to run to rack and then out.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really. Maybe ask people next to me not to throw their stuff on top of mine? Someone hung their wetsuit over my towel setup so my shoes were wet. GRRR
Run
  • 17m 5s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 05m 29s  min/mile
Comments:

WOW! Last year I had the 2nd fastest run time out of 2300+ sprinters. I told everyone that they cannot expect me to repeat this again as most of my 5k times are in the low to mid 20s.
I was 2nd again this year out of 2285!!! Maybe I should have asked for a drug test to see if the volunteers spiked the water with something haha ;)
I know this course step-for-step because I train down here so I am sure that that helps some. I have never had 5k times under 22 minutes except twice and both times were at the Chicago Triathlon. I dunno?!
It was really hot and I knew it was going to get hotter so maybe I wanted to run really fast before the heat started? Or maybe I was trying to dry off my shoes because the person next to me in transition let their wetsuit drip all over my stuff :)

What would you do differently?:

NOTHING!
Post race
Warm down:

The ice cold towels passed out at the end were a lifesaver! I walked around and drank a lot of water since I only had a little on the run. Ate a banana and stretched out and met up with wife and friends.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Not sure. I need to focus more training on swimming and biking. This was not my A race and it can be hard to PR since there are so many other racers.

Event comments:

For as many racers as there are this race is very well organized and run. There was plenty of aid stations on the run (at least for the sprint) and things started on time.




Last updated: 2010-04-09 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:21:42 | 820 yards | 02m 39s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/206
Overall: 1221/2285
Performance: Below average
Suit: full Zoot
Course: Straight course in Monroe Harbor with anchored boats on the east side and seawall on the west side. Spectators can line up along the wall/sidewalk and watch you throughout the entire course which is kind of cool actually. Swim time includes an approx 450m run along a concrete path to the transition area which probably took about 2 minutes.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 73F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Bad Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Average
Rounding:
T1
Time: 02:46
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:47:12 | 13.67 miles | 17.38 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/206
Overall: 1058/2285
Performance: Below average
Wind:
Course: Out and back along LakeShore Drive (4 lane highway). Right two lanes each direction have car traffic and left (inside) 2 lanes are for bikes.
Road: Potholes Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:28
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:17:05 | 03.11 miles | 05m 29s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/206
Overall: 2/2285
Performance: Good
Course: Run along the lakefront in the grass for the first mile and then concrete for the next 2. Rather narrow pathway out and back. Almost entire run course was in the sun.
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
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