Got The Nerve - TriathlonSprint


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Mt Gretna, Pennsylvania
United States
Chris Kaag
68F / 20C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 23m 42s
Overall Rank = 76/588
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 17/91
Pre-race routine:

I woke up around 4:15 AM and had an hour to wake up and drink plenty of coffee to get me going for the day. The night before I got the bike and all the gear packed in the car so the only thing left was just to jump in the car and go. Right before heading out I had two pieces of whole wheat bread. I was not in the mood to eat anymore nor I was hungry (note to self- not too many cocktails the night before a race :)). I arrived at the race parking lot by 6:45 and within 5-10 minutes I had my race packet.
Event warmup:

I chose not to warm up even though I had a 1.5 hour wait before starting the race. The warm up was pretty much setting the transition area and then walking briskly to a bikers tent in a desperate search for a water bottle. I left mine in the refrigerator back home. Not really panicking as I could have carried a regular water bottle in the jersey's back pocket... ate a small banana with 45 minutes before start time. I was on the ninth wave (out of 10) which was scheduled for 8:45.
Swim
  • 08m 24s
  • 500 yards
  • 01m 41s / 100 yards
Comments:

Issues with my wet suit. It is a full body suit and it chokes the crap out of my neck. I was prepared this time expecting that choking feeling and I tried ignoring it and dealing with the sensation. I started fast for the first 50 yards and then I slowed down to get my breathing under control and give time for the choking sensation to go away. Four guys from my wave passed me before the first buoy and from then on my only thought was to pace myself and relax on my two stroke breath....
What would you do differently?:

Swim warm up to get the muscles loose.
Transition 1
  • 03m 17s
Comments:

Struggled to get the suit off trying to un-strap the velcro. It took to long.

What would you do differently?:

Not only practice transition but get another wet suit that does not have a neck strap.
Bike
  • 47m 23s
  • 16 miles
  • 20.26 mile/hr
Comments:

Pushed hard throughout the whole course and stood up only a couple of times. I passed a ton of people specially on the climbs and tried staying on the threshold mode but found myself going over it twice.
What would you do differently?:

Pushed harder on the climbs
Transition 2
  • 01m 9s
Comments:

I tried getting my feet off the bike shoes but ended up snapping shoes off clips so had to run with shoes to bike rack station. This transition felt quicker but had to remove equipment from back pockets,
slipped shoes and off I went.
What would you do differently?:

Slip off feet from shoes and run bare foot. practice!
Run
  • 23m 29s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 07m 33s  min/mile
Comments:

Legs felt great- I ran at a good comfortable pace knowing that the first mile was going to be tough. I did not wear the hr monitor so I went by rpe. About ten people passed me making me feel I was not running fast enough but I knew I had my 5k pace. The last half I pushed a little harder and ran at threshold.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster and not leave anything out there.
Post race
Warm down:

None- walk to transition to gather equipment, walked to food tent (1.5 bagel, banana, 1 bag of trail mix and two water bottles.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Transition!!!!

Event comments:

I did not stay for post race activities- had to get out of there asap because I had to go to work.




Last updated: 2010-05-07 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:08:24 | 500 yards | 01m 41s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/91
Overall: 0/588
Performance: Average
Timing chip mat was probably 150 yds from lake.
Suit: Body Glove
Course: Open Lake - Triangular course set up and swimming it counter-clock wise.
Start type: Plus: Waves
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current:
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:17
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Bad Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
00:47:23 | 16 miles | 20.26 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/91
Overall: 0/588
Performance: Good
Wind: Cross-winds
Course: Course was great and it has a few serious climbs.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:09
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
00:23:29 | 03.11 miles | 07m 33s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/91
Overall: 0/588
Performance: Good
Course: Flat course run with half of it on a hard pack trail. 3/4 of the course was covered by trees.
Keeping cool Good Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4