Le Triathlon Cascades de Drummondville - TriathlonOlympic


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Drummondville, Quebec
Canada
26C / 79F
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 13m 57s
Overall Rank = 20/135
Age Group = 50-59
Age Group Rank = 1/11
Pre-race routine:

This was the 2nd of a series of races for the Provincial Quebec cup. You accumulate points and at the end of the season, winner is declared provincial champion and can qualify for Worlds

After last week's race at Mt-Tremblant I am probably ahead in points by 2.

I knew who #2 is so the idea is to stay ahead of him in points while having the best race possible. The greater the number of people between us, irregardless of age group, the more point advantage I get.

He is a better biker, I swim and run faster. The strategy was to get 1 or 2 minutes on the swim. I figured I could get maybe 1 on the run, but he is easily 2 faster on the bike, or aat least was last weekend. Overrall last weekend I beat him by 45 seconds and with only 500m to go.

Got to the race nice and early, setup and watched the kids from 5 years old to 17. Kind of fun.
Event warmup:

Nothing.
Swim
  • 25m 34s
  • 1500 meters
  • 01m 42s / 100 meters
Comments:

The start was a bit rough. Got hit several times but after the first turn things smoothened out. I swam very relaxed, felt good and came out of the water relatively fresh.

I wanted to swim an easy 25' so put my watch to buzz at 12.5 and sure enough it was right at the end of the first lap. So I stayed relaxed.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. I am probably good for 30seconds faster but it's not worth the effort.
Transition 1
  • 02m 21s
Comments:

Wetsuit came off well, but futzed to put watch back on wrist since it was in bathing cap. Ran with shoes on pedals and did already clipping in


What would you do differently?:

Not futz with watch
Bike
  • 1h 03m
  • 40 kms
  • 38.10 km/hr
Comments:

The guy I had to watch out for is a slower swimmer, slower runner, faster biker. I was expecting to get at least a minute on the swim. Maybe my T1 problems allowed him to catch me, but he passed me within 1 minute on the bike. Not good. And he was pulling away.

I figured I needed to lose as little as possible on the bike to him since I knew I could run faster. So I went after him. I could hold his pace comfortably so I would pass him to show him I was there, he would pass me...and we played that game for 30km.

With 10km to go, I knew I was close enough to him to run him down so I backed off to get my legs ready for the run. But I didn't lose any time to him as I think he backed off as well.

I hydrated, picked up the cadence and was praying for the run
What would you do differently?:

I was below my watts target but it was more important for me to race this guy smart. Knowing I could outrun him I figured I would take the lower watts and just pace it
Transition 2
  • 00m 47s
Comments:

All very fast. We came out of T2 5 seconds apart.
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 42m 19s
  • 10 kms
  • 04m 14s  min/km
Comments:

We left T2 together. I wondered about running 1 loop with him but the idea is to put as much distance between us so others could fill it and get a bigger point delta. So I just pushed it.

Within 100m I was pulling away. I knew I was normally faster but maybe he backed off a lot on the bike and was going to push the run.

When I got to the first turn around, I pressed reset on my watch and counted how much of a lead I had on him. 40 seconds. Cool. I did that every lap and I saw I was pulling 15 seconds further ahead.

But the idea is not just beating him, I had to put as much distance between me and him and hope other people finished in between so he would score less points. It's the sum for the season that counts. You get 1000-your overral rank. So I got 980. A younger guy finished after me, he got 979......then they add up the points and group by age. So a 20 year old that comes between me and him helps me.

I focused on trying to catch someone ahead but by then we had lapped people, people from the sprint were on the course, it was impossible to know who the competition was. I just tried upping my HR, but that last 1.25km segment was brutal
What would you do differently?:

Not much. Maybe drink ? I didn't drink at all on the run and the race finished at 28deg C.
Post race
Warm down:

Nothing. Just grabbed some water and sat on the grass.

When I saw the other guy finished I went to see him, shook his hand and told him I appreciated the race.

I made a point of telling him I never got into his draft which I know I didn't. However, even at legal draft limits I believe there is a benefit.I didn't know the guy very well so I chatted with him a bit. Turned out to be really nice.



What limited your ability to perform faster:

I wasn't trying to go for time, I was trying to place the best I could. I believe having someone to race on the bike and run made the race a lot more fun. Both went by really quickly

Event comments:

Medal ceremony was way too late




Last updated: 2011-12-20 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:25:34 | 1500 meters | 01m 42s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/11
Overall: 0/135
Performance: Good
Suit: orca wetsuit
Course: Rectangle in a river. Bit of current
Start type: Run Plus: Shot
Water temp: 21C / 70F Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:21
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:03:00 | 40 kms | 38.10 km/hr
Age Group: 0/11
Overall: 0/135
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: 5km out, 5km back, flat as a pancake
Road: Rough Dry Cadence: 87
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:47
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:42:19 | 10 kms | 04m 14s  min/km
Age Group: 0/11
Overall: 0/135
Performance: Good
Course: Out 1.25km and back, 4 times, flat course
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4