Highline Hustle - TriathlonSprint


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Grand Junction, Colorado
United States
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 25m 28s
Overall Rank = 20/202
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 3/
Pre-race routine:

Camped at the lake and woke up at around 5:00am to the sound of doves cooing. it was somewhat annoying. unloaded my bike and gear. had a bagel and a coffee (from a can).
Event warmup:

not much...while I was up in plenty of time I found myself in the transistion to get my wetsuit on with less than 10-minutes before the race started. once the wetsuit was on I did get in the water just long enough so I had an idea of the water temp.
Swim
  • 11m 1s
  • 500 meters
  • 02m 12s / 100 meters
Comments:

this was a really good swim for me! normally I start to the far right of most of the other swimmers but because I was a little late getting to the swim once I entered in the water I was directly facing the first bouy. I didn't really have time to try to relocate myself so I figured I would just deal with some of the faster guys swimming over me. I did get swum over some and bonked pretty good on the head once but once I got out about 50-yards I was feeling pretty good and for some reason headed right towards the bouy. Made that turn and I felt I kept a pretty good line for the entire swim. Everyone seemed to think this course was long. I would agree I think it might have been as much as 100-meters long. Also, the swim time includes a short run from the shore to transition. My watch time was about 30-seconds faster.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Transition 1
  • 01m 47s
Bike
  • 46m 27s
  • 16 miles
  • 20.67 mile/hr
Comments:

Normally when I get out on the bike course there are so many people in front of me that I pass quite a few other riders. That was not the case on this race. For the most part I rode without much passing. There was one guy that I passed early on and we did a cat and mouse thing for the first half of the race. There was a pretty big hill right before the turn-around and at that point I could see he as right on my tail. He passed me on the down hill and I just kept him in my sight and did not repass. As it turned out, I passed him on the run and that gave me the 3rd AG spot.
What would you do differently?:

There was a slight headwind on the 2nd half of the bike. I could have pushed the 2nd half a little harder but really I am pretty happy with my effort.
Transition 2
  • 01m 5s
Run
  • 25m 9s
  • 3 miles
  • 08m 23s  min/mile
Comments:

This run was ok for me. The course was long...I'm thinking maybe more like 3.5 miles. Right way the first guy I passed was the guy that we did the cat and mouse thing with on the bike. We made small talk for about a minute and then I picked it up a bit and he dropped back. At the time I did not know he was in my AG as for some reson the RD does not write ages on your calf for this race. Anyway, I had never run at this location before and while I had heard that there were some hills I was really surprised at how steep some of them were! Not long...but short and steep. I will admit that I do not run this type of terrain very well. I pushed the effort pretty hard; however, I think I had more in the tank at the finish. The last quarter mile or so was a flat stretch along the dam. This would have been a good place to sprint but I could see that I was not going to catch anyone and there was not anyone close behind that was going to catch me. I just kinda cruised in. :-)
What would you do differently?:

I had been dealing with a running injury back in April/May. I've been running pretty consistent over the last 3-weeks...but not with a great deal of intensity. That showned in the race.
Post race
Warm down:

Stood in the shade and drank some water.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

This was a new location to me. I had never biked or run the course before. I think had I of run the course and at least had driven the bike course I might have shaved a few seconds from my time. And as usual...my transitions need work!

Event comments:

This was my first race of the year and overall I am very happy with my effort...especially the swim! With my running issues this year I have been working somewhat harder in the pool and I think it was relflected with this race.

This is a small well organized event outside of Fruita on the western slope. An old friend of mine who lives in Grand Junction invited me to come out and race earlier this year and I decided it could make a fun weekend. the weather was pefect, the company was good, and the beers were plentiful! I would definately do this race again!




Last updated: 2011-04-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:11:01 | 500 meters | 02m 12s / 100meters
Age Group: 3/
Overall: 17/202
Performance: Good
Suit: john
Course: counter clockwise
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:47
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:46:27 | 16 miles | 20.67 mile/hr
Age Group: 3/
Overall: 14/202
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: out and back route from the reservoir on rural roads. some rolling hills.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:05
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:25:09 | 03 miles | 08m 23s  min/mile
Age Group: 3/
Overall: 32/202
Performance: Below average
Course: Trail run around Highline Lake with some rolling hills. Some of these hills were very steep!
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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] 4