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 Swim
Comments: This was an average swim for me. Not great, not bad either. I pushed it hard enough to put up a decent time, but still held back a little so my hands wouldn't be shaking and I could still focus during T1. I passed the guy in front of me on the 3rd length of the pool. The guy behind me (Joe Klinedinst, the eventual 3rd place overall) caught me around the 200 meter mark. The time includes a run of approximately 50 yds to the timing mat at the transition area. What would you do differently?: Nothing.  Transition 1
Comments: T1 went ok. Even with my socks rolled up in advance, I felt a little clumsy, and decided to sit down quick to throw them on along with my shoes. After that, it was ok, in spite of the rack being too low, forcing me to lean my bike hard to the side to get it out. There was barely enough room to do this without knocking down the bikes on either side. I was careful not to knock them over, so I lost some time there. This time was 3rd in my AG and 23rd OA. What would you do differently?: Avoid buying new running shoes so close to a race so I can get some more miles in them and go sockless without risking blisters. Try to get a spot where it would be a little easier to get my bike out.  Bike
Comments: This was an excellent ride for me! Last year I averaged about 19, and my training has gone well, with testing indicating that I have improved considerably. My goal was to average about 20. I kept watching my cycle computer throughout the ride and paid attention to my effort level, riding what felt like a fine line between not hard enough and too hard. I knew if I came off the bike with an average of 20+ and was able to run well, I'd be happy with my performance. I drank about 3/4 of the small portion of my aero bottle filled with a mix of about 50-50 water and Gatorade. A few times, I just rinsed and spit. As I flew into T2, I looked at my watch, and saw that I broke 50 minutes in spite of the longer course! Woo hoo! I was on pace for my original goal of 1:20! What would you do differently?: Nothing. If I had pushed any harder, it would have affected the run too much. If I had gone easier, I'd have left time on the table. I feel this was the best ride I had in me this day. Transition 2
Comments: 1st in my AG and 11th OA! Racking my bike was quicker and easier than unracking in T1, because all the other bikes were out of the way. I accidentally knocked my sunglasses off when I pulled my helmet off, but the landed on my towel, and I immediately decided to leave them rather than take the time to put them back on. It was still a little overcast, and I figured I would be fine without. Considering I didn't take my bike shoes off until I got to my spot, this was a fast transition! Oh yeah! Blazing! What would you do differently?: Again, not get new running shoes so close to a race. I could have cut a few more seconds if I had been able to go sockless and do a flying dismount so I wouldn't need to mess with my bike shoes in transision.  Run
Comments: I came out of T2, and my legs felt a little more dead than usual. I looked at my watch, and realized I could break 1:20 if I ran about 23 minutes. Last year my run was 24:26, but I've been running well in recent months, so I thought I still had a chance. For the first 1/3 mile or so, it was a little rough, with my right calf threatening to cramp. Some doubts crept into my mind about whether I could do it or not, but I quickly pushed them away, and reminded myself that if it was just a twinge of a cramp that I was right where I wanted to be, because it told me that I was going as hard as my fitness allowed. for about a 1/4 mile, I concentrated on a quick turnover and tried to relax my calf. By then, the cramp went away, and I was able to pick up the pace a little. Things were starting to hurt. A lot. I hit the turnaround and the aid station at around 11 1/2 minutes, so I knew if I could hang on, I had a very good shot of breaking 1:20. From this point in, I just dug deep and focused on one foot in front of the other, and tried to ignore the suffering. With about 1/2 to 1/3 mile to go, I started walking farther into the pain cave, increasing my effort level until I had nothing left to give. I crossed the finish line, then looked at my watch...1:19!!!...More than 3 minutes faster than last year, despite 3/4 mile more on the bike!!...Then promptly doubled over, gasping for air and trying to keep from passing out. I recovered within a few minutes, and walked back along the finish chute to cheer for the other finishers. What would you do differently?: Nothing. Just like the bike, I feel this was the best performance I had in me today. Post race
Warm down: Walked around, and stretched a little. What limited your ability to perform faster: Fitness. It's always fitness. Event comments: After the race, I walked over to the posted results, and saw that I was listed as first in my AG, but noticed that the posted times were gun times, and not actual, so I couldn't be sure I had actually won until they sorted everything out. This proved to be a circus, but it seemed to be a problem of the timing company, not the RD. Eventually, they handed out awards for top 3 OA male and female. My friend, Kayla, got 1st female. They immediately stopped the presentation, and asked for them back. A few minutes later, they tried it again, with Kayla receiving 3rd OA, but when they got to 1st, the woman they gave it to tried to correct them, saying her time wasn't that fast. They told her to keep it for now, and they'd sort it out later. They went on to award the AG's, and I was still 1st. 2nd place was 5 1/2 minutes behind! Later in the official results posted online, Kayla was listed as 2nd! Way to go! I still consider this to be a well-run event, and will probably continue to do it every year as a gauge of my fitness. By the numbers, I'm very happy with these results. 2nd or 3rd in my AG in Swim, T1, Bike, and Run, and 1st in T2. Last updated: 2012-03-01 12:00 AM
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United States
Hempfield Triathlon Club
60F / 16C
Overcast
Overall Rank = 14/140
Age Group = M40-49
Age Group Rank = 1/29
I arrived a few minutes after packet pickup started at 6:00. Checked in, saw I was seeded 30th for the swim, and got body marked. The woman who marked me commented on my tattoo, showed me her m-dot, and we chatted a bit about Ironman racing. It's always nice to arrive early, and be able to take my time setting up, and getting my mind in the right place.
I set up transition, and did one last review with one of the athletes I coach. This was his first race, and he was a little nervouse. He shouldn't have been, because he was well prepared. Ultimately, he was 7th of 16 in his AG, and enjoyed the race.
It had rained overnight, and was still drizzling as we set up. At least the temperature was considerably warmer than past years!
After having everything set up, I walked around, talking to all the usual athletes. I hadn't seen some of them since the last few races last year.
I spent some time visualizing my race plan. I was actually a little nervous, feeling some pressure to do well since I've started coaching. Last year, I finished in a little over 1:22, and was 5th in my AG, missing the podium by about a minute and a half. My original goal was to break 1:20 today, giving myself a good shot at the podium, but when I saw the bike course was longer, I figured matching last year's time would be a good revised goal.
Lastly, right before transition closed, I realized that I had a blister on my right heel from running sockless the day before. I've been riding and running sockless a lot the last 6 months, but I just got new running shoes. Saucony had discontinued the Kinvaras that I was using, so I had to switch to the Kinvara 2's. I only have about 15 miles on them, and I got the blister. I decided then to scrap my plan of going sockless and leaving my shoes on the bike coming into T2 to reduce the chances of my run being affected by a blister that was likely to tear open.
Easy 10 minute run with Kayla about 20 minutes before the start.
Arm circles during the last 5 minutes before my start time.