Nation's Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


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Washington, D.C., Washington, D.C.
United States
65F / 18C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 42m 56s
Overall Rank = 80/2417
Age Group = M40-44
Age Group Rank = 9/412
Pre-race routine:

I very nearly didn’t do this race. When the swim was cancelled I thought there wasn’t much point even though I had had a great time racing it last year. I hadn't tapered as my mind is focused on IMFL. But then, on further reflection, almost at the last minute I decided to do it. It’s my family’s last year in the US before we head back to the UK next summer so I won’t get another easy chance to ride like a hooligan around closed streets of DC. And it is the 10th anniversary of 9/11 of course : so in some ways I came round to feeling that being in DC, doing the race, experiencing the event with an additional dimension, was somehow showing my own respect as America remembered.

And so I lined up near the swim corrals this morning with 4000 others and heard the best rendition of the US national anthem, as the Stars and Stripes was hung from a large gantry by a firefighter and the sun rose over the Washington Monument. It was an electrifying, goosebump, moment and one that I won’t forget.

Event warmup:

None
Swim
  • 00m
  • 1640 yards
  • / 100 yards
Comments:

No swim - Potomac running too fast and with too much debris following storms earlier in the week
Transition 1
  • 01m 39s
Comments:

From corrals outside of transition - started with aerohelmet and sunglasses on (but went with racing flats on the feet rather than my bike cleats)

We could start with bike helmets on, so I imagine that an alien arriving from Mars this morning and landing in West Potomac park would have been highly confused by a large group of men and women with helmets on crammed into cattle-like pens. Anyhow the time passed as I watched other waves shuffle forward. I looked at my HR in the corral just as we started. 62BPM – hmm maybe I wasn’t treating this race with much respect.
What would you do differently?:

Be more assertive and get to the front of my wave to get a clear start (even with 15 others in the group I was held up running to my bike)
Bike
  • 59m 19s
  • 24.85 miles
  • 25.14 mile/hr
Comments:

As soon as I started the bike I kicked into a good rhythm. It’s a fast course and impossible not to draft at times especially down Clara Barton. But I didn’t get too held up and this was fast for me. I enjoyed it hugely and I felt the hooligan factor crank up as we headed back into town. It was all over very quickly – only took a couple of sips of Gatorade and water.

What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Transition 2
  • 01m 18s
Comments:

All good
What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Run
  • 40m 41s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 06m 33s  min/mile
Comments:

This run was short by about 0.2 mile. Really annoying – I imagine that the RD just hadn’t re-measured the course following the move of the transition area. So while I had a good run it wasn’t really that good. Took a few sips of water at aid stations but that was it.

What would you do differently?:

Push the pace harder for last 3 miles rather than last mile only
Post race
Warm down:

Nothing

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of taper. Run pacing

Event comments:

OK - putting aside all the 9/11 anniversary emotions. I can't complain abou the lack of a swim - Mother Nature has been cruel in this area for a couple of weeks (actually it was quite a feat to get the race on this week). But I was slightly annoyed that all the medium T shirts had run out by 5pm on Saturday (even with a whole lot of no shows), and far more annoyed that the run course was too short - I mean how difficult is it to measure 10k ?

I think though that the organisers need to look carefully at the overall numbers on the bike course given the route : there just isn't enough time to get things spread out. It is amazing there aren't more accidents as there is a massive range of abilities and route is narrow, especially on Clara Barton.

Post race is fine - good food and good live band.

However even if I wasn't going back to the UK next summer ahead of next year's Nations Tri - I wouldn't do it again.




Last updated: 2010-10-10 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:00:00 | 1640 yards | / 100yards
Age Group: 0/412
Overall: 0/2417
Performance:
Suit:
Course:
Start type: Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:39
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:59:19 | 24.85 miles | 25.14 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/412
Overall: 55/2417
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: Flat and fast
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:18
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
00:40:41 | 06.21 miles | 06m 33s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/412
Overall: 171/2417
Performance: Average
Course:
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
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] 3