Redondo Beach Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Redondo Beach, California
United States
TC Tri Productions, LLC
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 02m 33s
Overall Rank = 177/384
Age Group = 30-34M
Age Group Rank = 29/54
Pre-race routine:

Woke up around 5am. I was a still a little stiff and sore from my bike ride to San Diego the day before. I had a dream that I totally missed this race and was too late to start for it. I parked on Camino Real to avoid paying for anything and the crowds and rode my bike down Torrance Blvd. a little to the site. There were lots of people there. Set up my stuff, got marked, went to the bathroom, and had a banana.
Event warmup:

I didn't really warm up except for the jog along the beach to the start, and took a dip to check out the water and conditions. Not cold at all.
Swim
  • 23m 45s
  • 879 yards
  • 02m 42s / 100 yards
Comments:

No panic attack this time. I'm automatically gonna PR my swim time due to what happened last year. I've gotten used to ocean swimming a lot, but I still need to work on it. My sighting isn't the greatest and I don't swim as well as I do in the pool. I think because of the current I don't rotate my body enough to get that extra propulsion. I got right in with the washing machine and didn't let up. One of the waves knocked my goggles a little so I needed to adjust it.

While swimming my cap kept slipping up, like it was gonna come up. I had to keep adjusting it. When I got going I noticed not a lot of people were in my area, which was closer to shore. I was more focused on my own swimming so didn't see where everyone was, but they were a lot farther out.

My swim was better than my usual open water swims. My sighting wasn't as bad as normal and I stayed mostly straight. It's just I wasn't going as fast I'm capable of.
What would you do differently?:

Practice more open water swimming, work on my turnover and rotation as well as kick. Gonna aim for a sub 20 minute swim next year.
Transition 1
  • 03m 43s
Comments:

T1 takes a long time to get to from the beach so you have to make sure you pace yourself going up the ramp. I got my suit off and Garmin, helmet, shoes on. Then I ran out. Didn't bother with sunglasses. I didn't go for the flying mount since I haven't done it in awhile. On distances longer than Olympic I don't bother to do it.
What would you do differently?:

I'd set up and do the flying mount since it's faster. My transition was still faster than last year.
Bike
  • 17m 25s
  • 6 miles
  • 20.67 mile/hr
Comments:

I'm a lot faster on the bike this year due to lots of training, getting a tri bike and riding in aero. I wore my aero helmet and TNT tri shorts since I was repping TNT. My aero helmet has the names of people that are currently fighting cancer and those that passed away from it, so I want to try and use it as much as possible during races.

I think only 1 or 2 guys actually passed me, but then again the really fast guys were probably finishing up. My left nostril was running a lot cuz of the swim. Had to keep using my hand to wipe it and wasn't able to farmer's blow. I bet it looks kinda gross in the photos.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really. Keep training. A better bike fit with newer aero bars will help. Also I need to make sure my aero is correct since my helmet might have caused some drag. I'll set a soft goal for next year and try to average at least 22 mph. Since the course is so fast and I'm used to longer distances I didn't drink at all.
Transition 2
  • 01m 50s
Comments:

This was the only thing slower than last year. Didn't flying dismount.
What would you do differently?:

I had normal laces on my shoes instead of Yankz! so I'm sure I would have been a lot faster if I put Yankz! or some sort of speed laces on. I'm gonna do a flying dismount next year.
Run
  • 15m 51s
  • 2 miles
  • 07m 55s  min/mile
Comments:

My run has gotten a lot better since last year. My goal was to do it in under an 8 min/mile pace. I was keeping a little under a 7:30 pace until about 3/4 of the way through the course when I also started to slow down. I got a side stitch as well which slowed me down a lot more. It hurt but I still kept pushing.

Since the course was short I ended up barely hitting my goal, but really by the end of the run I was a few seconds slower than the goal time.
What would you do differently?:

I'm not sure how to avoid that side stitch. I guess find a better opportunity to take in fluid than that one. Soft goal for next year is to run it in 15 minutes or less.
Post race
Warm down:

Hugged a couple friends at the finish line, then got some post race eats and drinks.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I've been training for longer distances so that probably inhibited me a little, but the base I developed from that training has made me much faster than before. My coach wanted me to get under an hour, and I barely missed it. It's doable though. I'm aiming for sub 1 hour next year. Most of the time saved can be made on the swim. Little things like flying mounts/dismounts, speed laces can probably save me a minute or two.

Event comments:

This is the first triathlon I've ever done, so it's amazing to see how far I've come in a year. I didn't stick around as long since I had stuff to do that day and fewer friends came out than last year.




Last updated: 2010-11-08 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:23:45 | 879 yards | 02m 42s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/54
Overall: 0/384
Performance: Below average
Suit: Xterra Vortex 3
Course: Out, to the right, and back along Redondo Beach. The waves were easy to get past.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Average
Waves: Below average Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:43
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:17:25 | 06 miles | 20.67 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/54
Overall: 0/384
Performance: Good
Wind:
Course: Mostly flat and fast with a small descent that turns 180 degrees into an uphill near the pier. 2 loop course exactly the same as last year, except the repaved Esplanade.
Road:   Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 01:50
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:15:51 | 02 miles | 07m 55s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/54
Overall: 0/384
Performance: Good
Course: Very flat run around the boardwalk. According to my Garmin it's actually a little short, but oh well. I took a water from the first aid station, but none after. The course is so short that I hardly took in any fluids.
Keeping cool Drinking
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4