Ludington Lighthouse Triathlon - Olympic Distance - TriathlonOlympic

The water was a perfect temperature at 68 for a sleeveless suit. There was a big north wind coming across but the breakwalls obviously kept the big waves out but there was some chop out there. The RD said that the course was measured from the first buoy and then to the finish at the beach but we were starting on the beach (not the first buoy). So, the course was probably 100 yards longer since it was a beach start.

I started in the front row and to the left and wanted to get out quick for this swim. When the horn sounded everybody took off and then started yelling "whoa whoa" beacuse of all the rocks in the sand just off the beach. I only hit a couple rocks but am sure some people had some bloody feet. It was pretty shallow to the first buoy but half way to it we were able to start swimming. The swim to the first buoy was congested and then cleared out quite a bit. I was swimming ok but I felt like I was zig zagging all over the place out there and was never able to stay right on the buoy line. I was with probably 4 other people kind of boxed in the whole swim which was fine and I tried to just follow the bubbles. The water got like 5 degrees warmer at the very tip of the swim which was weird and then went back as we got closer to shore. The section back into the beach was directly into the sun and sighting was brutal. I could not see the guy 20 yards in front of me let along the buoys. I had to stop and breaststroke a couple times to get my bearings but I was swimming pretty straight on the way back in. I did manage to get on the feet of a guy for the last 300 yards and really had a nice draft and did not need to sight much. I hit the beach in 19:xx and was of course pissed :(.

My parents said people were all over the place coming back in because of the sun. I actualy was able to stay on target the whole way.

I have only been swimming twice a week the last 4 weeks and no OWS so that played a part but still my pool swims have been pretty good.

The first person out, a pro triathlete who smoked everyone, was out in 15:xx so it was a long(er) swim.

There is a short run in off the beach and I was able to get my wetsuit off pretty easily. I got into my shoes, buckled the helmet and was off to start the bike.

Nothing.

I jumped on the bike and was a little irritated about the swim. I wanted to try and build my effort through the first 5K or so and started off pretty easy. As I was a mile out of transition I hit a pothole in the road that almost sent me over my handlebars and crash. I was just barely able to hold on but swerved. At that point I needed to put the swim behind me and just try to do my best on the bike and run and salvage what I could.

As we got 5K into the bike my heart rate had come down and I was ready to rock. The wind was coming out of the north and this is mainly a north-south route so we definitely felt the affects. My legs were feeling really good and I was riding well and passing some folks. The section from 5K to 25K is pretty rolling and there is a winding section on the out and back that I really like. It is a narrow road with some small hills and sharp turns which was a nice change of pace. This is also the spot where I can see where I am at against the field. I was in 12th place at this point about 25K into the ride. After the short out and back on the winding road we are back on to the nice pavement of M-116 and dead into the headwind for 4 miles. This was just tuck into the bars and pray for mercy. I knew I was proably pushing too hard on this section but knew I would get some relief at the turnaround. It was nice to have the sprint athletes out there for some scenery. Once to the turnaround it is 10K back to transition and a nice tailwind. I ran out of gears on some sections on the way back which was nice. I cruised into transition expecting to really hurt on the run!

This was an average ride just wish it was not so windy.

Quick T2 - no issues. helmet off, shoes on, visor on, grab the race belt and off.

Nada.

One of the goals for this race to HTFU the run. I was not able to hold pace at Grand Haven and really wanted to get close to 42 flat for this 10K which has been a goal since Grand Rapids (the best I have done is 42:20 off the bike).

As I ran out of transition and turned the corner I felt amazing. I was actually kind of shocked that I felt this good. Usually I have to suffer for one mile before I get in a groove. Today, I was ready to push right from the start and that gave me some confidence starting the run. I passed one guy in transition and then passed another guy at the 1 mile mark so I had moved up to 10th OA. The first 1.25 miles is a gradual uphill and then a long downhill where I was flying. At the sprint turnaround we take a right into the park and I continued to feel pretty good. There is a short section in a residential area where I saw one guy up ahead that I could maybe reel in and just stayed strong. Back into the pathway there is a longer out and back where I could see some competition. There was just the one guy in striking range and 3 guys about 30 seconds back of me. I was still feeling really good and my pace was staying steady. Back out onto Lakshore Drive and 1.55 miles to go is the long ascent. I was able to really attack the hill and felt good but one of the chasers caught me here. I was determined to keep him close and really upped the pace as I crested the hill. This final stretch takes forever because you can see the finish chute but it is way the hell down there. I was absolutely flying on this last mile and it felt really good to run this well. I crossed the line satisfied that I had accomplished my HTFU mindset on this run and pushed hard.

10th OA amateur and 2nd AG.

Nothing..good run.

My parents were there and chatted with them and also some of the athletes. I stretched out a bit and ate some pizza and drank lots of water.


I need more time in the pool and OWS.


I really like this race. It is a great venue and a great course. I will come back every year. I wish they would do a 2 lap swim for 1500 meters though. They do the 1000m swim because of the length of the breakwalls but they could do 2 laps.