Shadow Creek Ranch Sprint Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Pearland, Texas
United States
Troika Promotions
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 31m 8s
Overall Rank = 270/600
Age Group = Clydesdale 40+
Age Group Rank = 7/17
Pre-race routine:

Got up a bit later than I probably should have. Filled the water cooler and put it in the jeep with the camelback bottles. Bikes were already loaded. Got a green banana (all they had at the store) and some peanutbutter crackers and hit the road.

When we got to the parking area I had about 30 mins to set up transition. I got bit a lot by fireants unloading the bikes, and I ended up rushing off without my sunscreen.... That will be an issue in a day or 2.
Event warmup:

After setting up transition I headed down to the water and got my feet in to cool the ant bites, then I did about 300 meter swim and then wandered around a bit looking for my wife. Probably walked 1k looking for her.
Swim
  • 06m 54s
  • 500 yards
  • 01m 23s / 100 yards
Comments:

The clydes were the last wave so we had been waiting a while to start.

I felt like I was passing quite a few people in the water. At first I was landing strokes on top of a few people but it eventually spread out.

I drafted for a few strokes on a few different swimmers, but most of them were slower than I so it didn't last long. One must have moved to the side fast because all of a sudden he wasn't in front of me anymore.

Toward the end I caught one of the men in the 45+ wave that went before us.

I thought I did really good at focusing on swimming, rather than the race here. I didn't have to stop to sight at all, and because of the straight course I didn't sight very much at all till near the end.
My wife was watching from the shore and since the other spectators had moved on to the bike I could see her everytime I breathed to the left standing there with her hands on her hips. Later she told me she was telling me to kick because my legs were sinking too much and adding drag.
What would you do differently?:

Kick more. In swim practice it is obvious my kick gives me no forward momentum, so this needs to change.
Transition 1
  • 01m 38s
Comments:

5th in Ag.

This is my first race with:
1) Clipless Pedals
2) Garmin quick release
3) Halo head band

I took my Garmin out of my swim cap coming out of the water and clipped it on the bike first. I thought about putting it on the wrist, but this was fine. I did forget to press the lap button till I was putting my helmet on though.

I grabbed my halo and put that on it took a second to get it lined up. Then the helmet chin strap wouldn't snap, and when it did it caught my beard, so I had to pull my whiskers out of the strap as I was moving with the bike.

I spent an hour Saturday practicing getting on/off the bike with the shoes clipped in. It helped. I got on the bike with the shoes clipped in and pedaled on top of them pretty seemlessly. No issues getting them in the shoes either.

Again, I didn't hit lap till after my shoes were in the pedals.
What would you do differently?:

Trim my beard. Do a better job of garmin lap hitting... this is not a huge issue.
Bike
  • 42m 51s
  • 13.5 miles
  • 18.90 mile/hr
Comments:

This is the first race I've done where I passed more than passed me. Maybe that is because I was in the last wave.

Only a few tri-bikes flew past me, one or 2 road bikes and I did trade back and forth. One guy in my AG passed me near the end, but I got him on the dismount. I think he passed me on the way into the run though.

I tried hard to keep my cadence in the 80-90 range, but I did do some mashing as I passed people.
What would you do differently?:

Probably should have backed off a little as I ended up walking part of the run. Drink more.
Transition 2
  • 00m 53s
Comments:

4th in Ag

I swapped my Garmin to my wrist on the bike before getting my feet out. The dismount was pretty much perfect considering it was my first race with clipless.

Swapped to a fresh Halo for the run, again fiddled with it for too long.

Got my race belt on and headed out.

Again, my timing on hitting the lap for my garmin was way off on the way in, and out, of T2.
What would you do differently?:

1) Put race belt on while running.
2) Put my second Halo in the race belt with my nutrition. Then I can put it on in the run.
Run
  • 38m 51s
  • 3.2 miles
  • 12m 08s  min/mile
Comments:

I started out too fast. I was already pretty tired. I had forgotten my sunscreen. There was no shade.

This does not make for a good run.

I got through a little over 2 miles then walked / ran the rest. At one point I left the sidewalk and ran on an incline for 10 feet so I could be in some shade.

Durring the first mile I ate a few shot-blocks, didn't seem to notice it much.
What would you do differently?:

Wear sunscreen.
Drink more on the bike.
Carry my own water for the run in this heat?

Post race
Warm down:

Using ice rag and water cooled down. Tried a orange slice, but they were a bit warm. No Pizza at this race, but they had kolachies, but by the time I was done they were almost gone... I got one with fruit filling.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

The heat and not enough bike miles.

Event comments:

From what I can tell this is the first race from this RD and the first race in this venue.

It went pretty smooth for a first year. I think there is a pretty good chance I will do it again next year.

On the positive side:

1.The bike course was really fast compared to both Tejas and Kona East side.
2.The straight swim was a nice change from circling around.
3.Plenty of volunteers / police.
4.The ice cold towel at the end was a nice touch. Maybe doing that at the aid stations would have helped.
I have a few items to put in the "Improve" category.

1.Really didn't like being the last wave, on a race that started late, with 5 mins between waves. It got really hot and I don't think clydesdales generally do well in the heat.
2.For a place called Shadow Creek there was no shade. The sprinklers at the swim start could have been useful on the run.
3.They were out of water at the second aid station on the run by the time I got there.
4.I think they should have completely closed the road in front of the transition area. I almost got hit going through the second loop by a impatient car.
5.I have a bunch of fire ant bites from the parking area
6.I don't really care about the swag BUT when you advertise the reason to do a race is "Your race pack will be filled with high quality items (And maybe some suprises)." then a cotton blend T shirt, and a drink holder doesn't match the advertising.




Last updated: 2011-07-02 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:06:54 | 500 yards | 01m 23s / 100yards
Age Group: 4/17
Overall: 0/600
Performance: Good
Suit: no
Course: Very straight course in a long lake in a subdivision. We didn't swim near them but the lake has a few fountains in the middle of it. Because the course is straight you really don't have to sight if you keep your breathe bilaterally and see that you are straight between the shores. The start was near the edge of the lake, but the actual start lanes were in water over your head. So wade or deep water were both possible.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 80F / 27C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:38
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:42:51 | 13.5 miles | 18.90 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/17
Overall: 0/600
Performance: Good
Garmin speed conflicts with race speed: Avg Speed: 18.0 mph Avg Moving Speed: 18.1 mph Max Speed: 23.9 mph Heart Rate Avg HR: 147 bpm Max HR: 155 bpm Avg HR: 79 % of Max Max HR: 84 % of Max Avg HR: 3.9 z Max HR: 4.4 z Cadence Avg Bike Cadence: 81 rpm Max Bike Cadence: 122 rpm Laps (a bit off due to me starting the Garmin late). 1 00:03:14 1.00 18.5 2 00:03:15 1.00 18.5 3 00:03:30 1.00 17.1 4 00:03:08 1.00 19.0 5 00:03:05 1.00 19.5 6 00:03:10 1.00 18.9 7 00:03:26 1.00 17.5 8 00:03:26 1.00 17.5 9 00:03:16 1.00 18.4 10 00:03:29 1.00 17.2 11 00:03:05 1.00 19.5 12 00:03:21 1.00 17.9
Wind: Some
Course: This is a 2 loop course with the loops going all the way back to the transition area. The course was flat and fast. It started and ended in the neighborhood but got out on one of the main roads for a good portion of it with a U-Turn at the far end. Only about 5 turns in each loop so not very technical at all.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills:
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 00:53
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:38:51 | 03.2 miles | 12m 08s  min/mile
Age Group: 8/17
Overall: 0/600
Performance: Below average
Summary Avg Pace: 12:39 min/mi Avg Moving Pace: 11:48 min/mi Best Pace: 07:45 min/mi Heart RateAvg HR: 149 bpm Max HR: 159 bpm Avg HR: 81 % of Max Max HR: 86 % of Max Avg HR: 4.1 z Max HR: 4.6 z Laps off a bit due to late garmin stop/start. 1 00:09:48 1.00 09:48 2 00:11:12 1.00 11:13 3 00:14:24 1.00 14:23
Course: VERY VERY sunny course. Don't let the name "Shadow" Creek fool you. The course was flat, with mostly good sidewalks. We only had to cross a few streets and there were people/police present. There was one stretch of about a block with no sidewalk... or maybe an partial one, it wasn't smooth but there was a foot path worth of concrete under the grass. There was a water stop at 1st and second mile and water at the end with cold towels. They were out of water at the second stop, but had Cyclomax
Keeping cool Bad Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? No
Post race activities: Below average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3