Marshman Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Downingtown, Pennsylvania
United States
Piranha Sports
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 44m 59s
Overall Rank = 387/409
Age Group = Clydesdales
Age Group Rank = 37/41
Pre-race routine:

Being the first tri I was doing in over two years, and with minimal training - I did it at the egging of a good friend of mine, John, who is really into doing tris - I didn't have a routine. The Marshman was held in my area, so I headed over to John's place to pick him up and travel over to the park.
Event warmup:

There wasn't any warmup to be had. After getting marked and setting up my transition area, I talked to other racers and talked to John. I was surprised that I wasn't nervous. I knew what I was getting into, and I had really no expectations. Two goals - finish, and don't die.
Swim
  • 11m 49s
  • 402 meters
  • 02m 56s / 100 meters
Comments:

I felt the most confident in this leg going in, and the most disappointed after. The start was out at the first buoy in the lake, which was approximately 75 meters from shore, and we could swim out after the prior wave started. As soon as I got into the water and started swimming, there was pond grass everywhere. It made visibility worse, and then I started getting tangled in it. That made me panic a little. I was ready for open water, but not that. And that was all before the gun sounded. I wasn't even out to the buoy before the gun started.

Once the gun sounded, I got moving, and eventually got into a rhythm, but the grass was an issue through the entire course. About two-thirds of the way through the swim my shoulders started aching and burning - I'm assuming it was due to the grass - but I had finally relaxed and started passing people from my wave, which felt great, but I knew I was shot. I had burned too much energy fighting in the pond grass.
What would you do differently?:

The whole concept of training would have helped. I think if I had focused more in the swim on what I was actually doing in terms of stroke I could have preserved some energy. I was probably thrashing a bit too much.
Transition 1
  • 03m 20s
Comments:

Didn't dry my feet well enough and my feet got caught up in my socks. Aside from that, this went much quicker than I had anticipated. Trotted to the mount line - the line was a grassy slick uphill from transition, and I didn't want to wipe out.
What would you do differently?:

Aside from drying my feet, nothing.
Bike
  • 59m 57s
  • 12.5 miles
  • 12.51 mile/hr
Comments:

I wasn't happy about this, because I knew the course. I was still sucking wind after the swim, and right out of the gate there were two big hills. I had to get off the bike for a few minutes and walk to catch my breath, which was REALLY disappointing - but then again, with minimal training, I should have seen it coming. The rest of the course was pretty decent. I kept moving smoothly, passed a few people, and aside from those first few hills, was happy with it.
What would you do differently?:

Um, yeah, train.
Transition 2
  • 01m 27s
Comments:

I was pleased with this. A lot faster than I thought I would have been. I had to walk down the hill - again, slick grass - but my legs felt great.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Run
  • 28m 24s
  • 2 miles
  • 14m 12s  min/mile
Comments:

My legs felt great after the bike - I would have to say that the bike fittings this summer were HUGE. No real brick-like feeling. The problem was the lack of training. I did better than I thought I would in this leg - the first mile wasn't great - I kept sucking wind - but the second mile was much better as I got into a rhythm and was able to run longer distances before having to walk. If it had been a 5K, the last mile would have gone well.
What would you do differently?:

Train.
Post race
Warm down:

Stretched and then went back to John's for breakfast with his family.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I'll give you three guesses, but you'll only need one.

Event comments:

This is a great race, especially for beginners (or people like me, who have been away for a while). Neil and everyone at Piranha do a great job with their races. While I was disappointed with all of the pond grass in the lake, it's a challenging bike, and a good run.




Last updated: 2010-08-30 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:11:49 | 402 meters | 02m 56s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/41
Overall: 323/409
Performance: Below average
Suit: Tri shorts
Course: Point-to-point in a lake.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Shot
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:20
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:59:57 | 12.5 miles | 12.51 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/41
Overall: 371/409
Performance: Average
Wind:
Course: Out of the park and around once. Hilly.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:27
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:28:24 | 02 miles | 14m 12s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/41
Overall: 407/409
Performance: Average
Course: Out and back. Asphalt and gravel trail. One big hill before the turnaround.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4