23rd Annual Tri For Real - TriathlonSprint


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Pleasanton, California
United States
On Your Mark Events
60F / 16C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 37m 45s
Overall Rank = 78/250
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 18/56
Pre-race routine:

Woke up 4am. Dressed, ate egg whites and honeydew melon. Grabbed my stuff and left for the event at 4:40. Drank water up to 5am then no more liquids. Arrived at 5:40 in total darkness and setup transition area. Good thing I brought my running head lamp. Set everything up and took a little nap in my car until around 6:40. My wave start was at 7:10.
Event warmup:

After waking up from my nap, I took a jog around to make sure my HR was a little up and to test my shoes a bit. Everything checked fine. I put on my wetsuit, double-checked my transition area, grabbed 1/2 bottle of Gatorade and made my way to the start area. I watched the 1st wave go at 7am, drank my "juice" and jumped into the water for a short warmup. At 7:05 I made my way to the start zone.
Swim
  • 12m
  • 700 yards
  • 01m 43s / 100 yards
Comments:

The individual legs are not timed, but my swim must've been really fast (for me) because I did well in the overall time. The water wasn't that cold. Lots of people did not use a wetsuit, but I'd say 80 percent did. I'm glad I wore mine not only to stay warm but for the bouyancy provided. I started with my AG somewhat to the front and right of the group. I noticed lots of space being given to the front guys. My guess is that the ones behind me were the newbies. There were few waves except those that get created by dozens of people thrashing around. I did stop to catch my breath a couple of times. Once when I got a breath-full of water and I had to cough it out. Another time when I seemed to get a little out of breath. Both stops were very short and I resumed my movement forward quickly.
What would you do differently?:

I feel the need to continue to get experience with OWS. Occassionally, I drifted to the left, but this happened much less than previous races. I'll try wearing ear plugs to prevent dizziness. See T1 comments.
Transition 1
  • 01m 30s
Comments:

Transition was good. The only problem I ran into was feeling pretty darn dizzy when I was putting on my shoes. If I didn't have my hand on my bike handlebar when I bent over, I'm sure I'd have fallen over. I've been told to wear ear plugs during the swim to prevent this. I did not wear socks on the bike and experience no issues with that.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. Good transition.
Bike
  • 51m 58s
  • 18 miles
  • 20.78 mile/hr
Comments:

Pushed hard, but not so hard that I cramped my legs at any time. I've done this in past races and I tried to avoid this b/c I realize it negatively affects my run split. I went in with the goal of maintaining 18mi/hr average overall, but I felt good and managed to go faster and not get too tired or let my legs get crampy.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. Great ride!
Transition 2
  • 01m
Comments:

Good and fast. I took it very easy when getting off the bike. I fell over in the last sprint so this time I made sure to get my footing before swinging my leg off the bike. I didn't take my feet out of my shoes like I did in a previous race. I just unhooked my shoes and walked with them to my transition area. This worked out fine. I wore my new light/fast trail shoes (Solomon) and was able to just slip right into them. I love the Yankz. They are awesome!! I didn't wear socks, but might re-think this decision next time (got some mean blisters). Didn't wear a hat (it was overcast) or sunglasses. The sunglasses was a bad idea b/c little swarms of bugs were on the trail and one time a bug got in my eye which didn't help my comfort.
What would you do differently?:

Re-think not wearing socks in the Solomoon trail shoes. Those darn blisters!! Wear sunglasses even if it's overcast.
Run
  • 31m 17s
  • 4 miles
  • 07m 49s  min/mile
Comments:

I ran out of transition with my Garmin in my hand. I turned it on and strapped it on as I got on the trail. I gave this one 13 yr old kid an encouragement as I past him. I thought "some day that'll be one of my boys". I forced my legs to turn over quickly to get the heavy feeling out. After a minute, I settled into a 7:45 mi/min pace and tried to hold that for as much of the run as possible. I passed a lot of younger guys which felt great. I was passed by a 60 year old which felt... great too. I thought "that will be me some day". I only walked while downing a cup of water at the stations. Other than that, I was hauling "A" as much as possible. A few times, I ran through swarms of bugs and wished I had my sunglasses. One time a bug got stuck in my right eye. Not good, but I pressed on with him in tow, in my eye. Toward the last 1/2 mile, I really started to feel a blister on top of a toe on my right foot. I thought, "damn, should have worn socks", And then "Pain is temporary, Quitting is forever". Thanks to Josh for that one. This kept me from slowing down. I pushed on disregarding the pain I felt and picked up the pace. One guy passed me in the last 1/4 mile. He had "41" on his leg and I though "No way. That guy is my age and I can't let him dust me at the end like this". So I gave all I had to catch him. I didn't, but finished under 1:38:00 which was far better than my prediction of 1:44:00. That guy finished 7 seconds ahead of me and we had a laugh together at the end. Turns out he was chasing me down from the start. Good story, except it would have been better if I beat him at the finish. :)
All things considered, I had an awesome run.
What would you do differently?:

Wear sunglasses and socks (if wearing those Solomons)
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around the Finish area. Stretch for 10 minutes before leaving. Eat, eat, eat. Drink, drink, drink.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I think I could continue to improve my overall fitness in all 3 disciplines. There is more left. I cracked the top 20 in my AG in this race and next year, my goal is to crack the top 10.

Event comments:

On Your Mark Events puts on a good event. It's well organized with lots of volunteers. The course is well monitored and marked. There's more than enough food and drink after the race. The energy level is fantastic.




Last updated: 2010-05-05 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:12:00 | 700 yards | 01m 43s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/56
Overall: 0/250
Performance: Good
Suit: Yes
Course: Half square from point A to point B. Lake water is pretty clear and not too cold.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Good
Rounding: Below average
T1
Time: 01:30
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:51:58 | 18 miles | 20.78 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/56
Overall: 0/250
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: Very fast course with long straight roads and 1 or two minor little hills.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:00
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:31:17 | 04 miles | 07m 49s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/56
Overall: 0/250
Performance: Good
Course: Hard packed jeep trail. Lots of turns and small hills. Enough water stops that there's no need to carry water.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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