Rainman Triathlon (Time Based) - TriathlonSprint

Chatted with a guy prior to the wave start who happened to be a former swimmer at a major D1 program who said he was going to aim for 1:15s, so I hopped in a lane with him, hoping to draft. Was able to do so for about 200, but when I saw my 200 split was a 2:20, I knew the pace was hot for me, and had to back off. Was feeling great going through 750 (500 split was ~6:17), but the pool was far hotter than I was used to, and I started getting pretty dizzy. Hit 1100 with 39 seconds left, and decided to go for one more 50, which I finished with 3 seconds left. My fast starting lane partner lapped me right as time expired, hitting 1200.

Time reflects 1150 pace translated into 800 yards, the metric used by race organizers for calculating results.

The "transition" was a bit of SNAFU for me; as soon as our 15 minutes in the pool ended, our 30 minute bike time commenced, and included the time it took us to march to the bikes. I was a little dizzy getting out of the water and was the last to the bikes, and quickly got my shoes and tri shorts on, and set up my water bottle.

Be quick!

Despite my slow transition, I was still first on my bike. I still missed 1:30 of bike time which bummed me out. I went by my P-Tap as opposed to speed and power on the trainer computer, as that was markedly off and inconsistent. I forced myself to stay at 285W for the first 4 minutes, to allow my body to adjust to the switch in activity. This was a very good idea, as I felt terrible for 3 of those 4 minutes, and warmed up by the end. I let myself slowly ramp up, and ended up averaging 305W over the 28:30 or so I was on the bike for.

I certainly would have gone harder if I was in a more amenable environment, but this was on a pool deck, and I wanted to play it safe as not to cook myself. This was a good idea, as I actually felt pretty decent coming off the bike.

Note: time calculated by extrapolating 11.11 miles (what trainer read) to 12.5 miles. 30 minute bike segment included the first transition

Took it easy for the last 30 seconds, and slipped out of my shoes with 5 seconds left, hopping off quickly once the buzzer went. Got my running shoes on quickly, pulled on a shirt (sort of), grabbed my watch, and hit the road for the run.


Get shoes on quicker; will be simple with practice.

What to say? Felt awful for the first mile, the switch from pool deck to real air hit me badly, and I was coughing crap from my lungs for the first mile or so. Most of the people in my wave didn't have clipless pedals, so they all beat me out of transition; caught up to the person furthest forward on the run at about the .75 mile marker, which was bad for me... with nobody else to shoot for, my mind wandered, and I probably let up a little. By the end of my Green Lake lap, I was still very cooked, though. Could have used a little more HTFU, but how often can one completely drain the tank?

Note, run time included transition, so knock at least 35-40 seconds off, if not more.

Run harder, HTFU?

Very excited about this... first ever podium at an event, and I know that I have tremendous upside, particularly on the run leg. I guess its a good thing that my A events are 4 and 5 months away respectively!


Great event. Wonderfully organized, would/will definitely do again.