DERBY ROCKN ROUTE - TriathlonSprint


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Derby, Kansas
United States
DERBY REC CENTER
90F / 32C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 42m 4s
Overall Rank = 170/233
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 8/9
Pre-race routine:

Drove down to Derby with the family Saturday morning. Had guacamole and a taco for lunch; picked up my race packet; then took the boys to Rock River Rapids for the afternoon. I mostly sat and watched, but every 30 minutes or so, I swam 50-100m. After the water park, we all went to Kobe's. I had chicken, which I thought would be best for pre-race, but I still ate too much. I was worried about what that might mean for the morning. Got everyone back to the hotel and to sleep by 10:30 or so.
Event warmup:

Woke up at 5:00 a.m. Showered, left the hotel at about 5:30. Our hotel was just 1.5 miles from Rock River Rapids, so I rode my bike down so the family could have the car to come later. Checked in, got body marked, and started eating my Clif bar. I decided to keep nutrition simple. Drank a little water, but not that much. At 6:15, I climbed in the pool and swam 200m. That swim felt good (unfortunately, better than the race swim). The first swimmer took off a little early (at 6:50 a.m.). I watched a few swimmers go, and then made one last trip to the bathroom.
Swim
  • 12m 29s
  • 437 yards
  • 02m 51s / 100 yards
Comments:

Swimmers were supposed to go off every 20 seconds, but as some suspected, they shortened that by quite a bit -- every 10 seconds or so. I ended up in the water at about 7:30. Just never hit my stride. I finished the first 100m, grabbed the wall to duck under the buoys and there was a crowd of about six swimmers coming my way in a pack. I decided I did not want to get into that mix or make all of them pass me, so I held back and let them go first. Did another 100m and noticed the guy in front of me was doing the breast stroke, so I thought, "Why not?" So I did 50m of breaststroke another 50 of freestyle another 50 of breaststroke and then finished with freestyle. (That all should add up to 400m.) I was so thankful to be out of the pool. It was miserable. I could never get into a proper rhythm with my breathing or my stroke. Is it possible to like OWS better than pool swimming? Because I think I do. Even though the sun was out, I remember the swim as being dark and not scary, just not friendly. Hopped out of the pool and ran to the bike.
What would you do differently?:

I just need to keep working on the swim. For my whole life I have told myself "I'm just not a swimmer." I need to change that, be more positive, and work at it. I'm planning on lessons this fall, so I'm hoping next summer my swim will not frustrate me so much. I still have another 500m OWS over Labor Day, and I will manage. I know it will be better.
Transition 1
  • 01m 47s
Comments:

I didn't have socks to fuss with, and I was so thankful to be out of the water and onto the bike. After I crossed the mount line, it did take me a few seconds to get my cleats in, but then I was off.
What would you do differently?:

I just need to move faster. This really should take less than a minute.
Bike
  • 54m 14s
  • 14 miles
  • 15.49 mile/hr
Comments:

This was a pretty good ride for me. I could have pushed harder, I think, but I just don't have the muscle power yet. I was pushing my little hybrid bike just about as fast as it could go, especially up the hills, and I passed a good number of people. I was also passed by a few, including someone in my age group. It kind of ticked me off. I saw her letter, and muttered under my breath, "Go ahead. I will cook you on the run!" I tried to keep her in my sight as well as I could. The train worked to my advantage in that. We both got stuck at the same train, so she had to work harder to get the lead back over me.

The whole train debacle didn't bother me that much. I saw it coming, and muttered, "Really???" It was a huge freight train, and I was prepared to sit there for 20 minutes (as can sometimes happen). Fortunately, it was clipping along, so it delayed us maybe 5, at the most.

At one point cruising down Rock Road (downhill), there was a "Your Speed is. . ." machine, and my speed was 24. Okay, it was downhill, but I was also pedaling as hard as I could, too.

I kept the chain on the large ring for most of the ride, even on some of the hills. There were one or two hills where I had to go to the middle ring and that really pissed me off, so I berated myself as a wimp and got back up to the large ring as quickly as possible.

The course had five major turns -- I decided to drink a little water at each turn (just before or just after). I ended up drinking maybe 8 ozs of water, but I decided that since it wasn't that hot out, I would be fine. I knew I would get water just outside the transition area and again at miles 1 and 2 on the run, so I didn't over drink on the bike. At the El Dorado Tri I ended up needing to pee near the end of the bike ride, so I over did the water. I didn't want to make that same mistake.
What would you do differently?:

Just need to ride more. I get no hill practice at all where I live, and I'm still always surprised that these Kansas routes have as many hills as they have. The 34 miles I rode in the West Texas hill country did help me on this ride, however. None of the grades were as bad as the grades on that route, and I had gotten a chance to practice downshifting and gaining more speed going down hill, which helped me. I also used my cleats for the first time, and I need to practice more with those. I'm not sure I'm getting full range of motion advantage with them all of the time.
Transition 2
  • 02m 7s
Comments:

Couldn't find my spot, overshot it, had to go back, and someone had racked their bike in my spot (We didn't have assigned spots). I silently cursed them and then forgave them because I knew they were in a hurry. I racked next to theirs, thinking maybe I was in their spot and not taking another spot, but it's possible that someone later on cursed me.

Why does it take me 2 minutes to take off one pair of shoes and put on another pair? Seriously. Even when I practice this, it takes me 2 minutes. I could try to take my cycling shoes off on the bike, I guess, but I'm a little nervous about that trick.
What would you do differently?:

Move faster. Just effing move faster.
Run
  • 31m 24s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 10m 08s  min/mile
Comments:

Of course I was all wobbly have the bike because I had pushed it pretty hard, for me. Got through the first water station, drinking one cup of water and dumping another down my back/head. It was freezing! But after the initial shock wore off, it felt great. (Did the same thing at miles 1 and 2.)

Got my legs under me at about half to three/quarter mile in. I need to give a shout out to the male runner who was coming in as I was heading out. He was high fiving everyone and telling us all how awesome we were. I know he was doing it for everyone, but it really lifted my spirits. I picked up the pace.

Hit the first water station and that's right about where the loop around the park started. I felt fantastic, so I really kicked it. I would pass someone, then pick out the next person in front of me and say, "You're next." Then I'd pass that person and move on to the next.

I won't lie. I was passed by a couple people, too, but they were these young, tall 20-something guys who must have sucked at swimming, because they were speedy fast on their feet.

I can't remember at what point I passed the woman in my age group that had been ahead of me on the bike. I think it was before mile one. She was running, but I could tell she was hurting. She started walking just before I passed her. I knew then that I was not going to be last in my age group. :-) There was no way she was going to catch me. My run was nearly 10 minutes faster than hers.

A couple times on the loop around the lake, I was hurting a little and my body wanted to slow down, but I just told myself to hush and run faster; and I ran faster. I was in control of my race and my pace, and that felt great.
What would you do differently?:

Where I am right now, I couldn't be happier with this run. I do know, however, that if I want to podium with the ladies running in my age group, I need to take another five minutes off my run. If in another year or two, I could take a minute or two off my 1 mile time, I could be competitive in the run.
Post race
Warm down:

Standing in line for 30 minutes with people, waiting for your swim, you get to know people. 173 or so grabbed me right after I finished and wanted to chat about the race, but I was spent. All I could think about was grabbing a banana and some orange juice. I tried to be civil and coherent and listen well, but I just didn't have it in me yet. Walked over to the transition area to get my phone and call my family because I'd finished about 30 minutes before I had expected to, so they missed the whole thing, but transition wasn't open yet. So I stretched on the pool deck, and 169 or 170 saw me. We were able to talk for a while, coherently.

After I retrieved my bike and gear and called the family, I signed up for my first post-race massage/stretch. It really made a difference, and I will likely do that again.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Can't say age because the other women in my age group are AWESOME. So, I'll just say time. I need to run more, and after today, I am encouraged to run more.

I've got one more season with this hybrid. I LOVE my bike, even if the LBS guy in San Antonio called it "garage sale fodder" to my face. This bike has served me pretty well and is a comfortable bike, but once I get my body in better shape, I know I will need to move on. I'm only going to be able to go so fast on this bike, so if I want to be more competitive, I need to be closer to 20mph than 15mph.

I've come to peace with my swimming ability. I will have patience with myself, but I will not be satisfied until I can get a decent time for my swim. I can do it sometimes in practice, so one day I will be able to do it in a race, as well.

Event comments:

Train issue. Racers were promised that trains were being held for us, which I wondered about. Turned out, they were not, and a bunch of us got stuck waiting for a freight train.




Last updated: 2011-07-11 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:12:29 | 437 yards | 02m 51s / 100yards
Age Group: 9/9
Overall: 0/233
Performance: Below average
Suit:
Course: 400m serpentine pool swim.
Start type: Inside Pool Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:47
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:54:14 | 14 miles | 15.49 mile/hr
Age Group: 9/9
Overall: 0/233
Performance: Average
Wind: None
Course: A 14 mile box around Rock River Rapids -- Derby mostly, but a little into Mulvane.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:07
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Below average
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
00:31:24 | 03.1 miles | 10m 08s  min/mile
Age Group: 5/9
Overall: 0/233
Performance: Good
Course: Nice loop through a residential area and into a park around a small "lake."
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4