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 Swim
Comments: I was very disappointed in my swim. I expected to be strong in this area and while ultimately I did OK (4th in my age group) I did not reach my potential. Because of the shortened course, the wave swelled to include all men 30-40 for both the short and the long course. This is my first attempt entering from the shore in a wave. I knew about the crowd and the congestion, but I hadn't experienced it and it showed. I never could get comfortable: I was constantly running into people, getting kicked and never got into any kind of pattern of breathing. I was breathing heavily only 100 yards into the course. Because of the short course the mob never thinned and so I battled the entire way. This was probably the most disappointing part of my day. At one point I swam completely over the top of some guy in the previous wave who was backstroking...awkward. What would you do differently?: Read up on swim strategies. I can swim fast, but I've got to figure out a better approach to the mob.  Transition 1
Comments: I thought my transition went ok. I was breathing heavily on the swim exit. I tried to take my time drying off my feet and putting my socks on. I can't move very quickly with my Look cleats. My mount went ok and I avoided any embarrassing falls. I thought it went ok for my first ever transition but I'm sure there is room to improve. What would you do differently?: set up better and think through the entire transition better.  Bike
Comments: I thought the bike went pretty well but in hindsight I didn't hammer it nearly hard enough. I was passing lots of people and I was only getting passed by $5K tri bikes and areo helmets so I figured I was doing ok. I was also trying to save my legs for the run. I almost never had to get out of the saddle and the hills was quite small. What would you do differently?: Go harder. I could have increased my average speed I'm certain. I think I got too comfortable passing slower people and did not reach my potential. Transition 2
Comments: I had never contemplated taking my feet out of my shoes while riding in order to speed the transition. The transition went ok...I felt it was somewhat smooth but not incredible. What would you do differently?: see above. Just refine and practice.  Run
Comments: Not even 1 mile in and I started walking up a few hills. I didn't want to walk at all but I was feeling it already and wanted to last the entire race. At this point I wasn't sure if I was still on the long course or if the race officials had changed everyone to short course. I got going and passed a ton of people that must of been short-coursers. After the short course turned around the field really opened up. At that point, I was starting to get passed by faster runners. For a long time I was running by myself (it seemed). I had a hard time on miles 3-4 and caught a little more life toward the end. I started catching a few people at the end. On the final half mile I tried to push it but I didn't have much in the tank. What would you do differently?: train, try not to get injured. The run is the most difficult part for me. I plan to step back on my training and start running short distances and building up into the 8-10 miles range. I went too far too quickly and I think my body has not always handled it well. Post race
What limited your ability to perform faster: Injuries slowed my training. It had been about 1.5 weeks since my previous run as I was trying to save my Achilles. It helped me stay healthy. I need to prepare for the swim better, push myself on the bike more, and get better conditioned for the run. Event comments: This was a good race. I was disappointed that the course was shortened but it was done for the athlete's safety in mind. Overall, it was a great experience for a first-time. Last updated: 2012-04-19 12:00 AM
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United States
UltraMax
80F / 27C
Overcast
Overall Rank = 96/164
Age Group = 3539
Age Group Rank = 10/15
The family and I drove to Topeka the night before and stayed in a motel. We were going to meet my friend Josh and his family but they showed up very late.
We met at 6:30am in the hotel for breakfast. I was not hungry at all but knew I needed food. I ate 2/3 of a bagel with peanut butter and some fruit.
We got to the race site and were very rushed. There was a storm approaching the area and the guy on the mic system was urging all participants to finish up setting up their transition and head to the water. I would have strongly preferred to have more time to relax and situate everything exactly how I want it.
I did not have time to do any warmup. The organizers rushed everyone to the starting point indicating they were going to start early, but when everyone arrived they said that they actually weren't allowed to start early. They did announce that the race course was going to be shortened due to impending weather. They eliminated the long course swim and bike and everyone did the short course. The run course remained the same.
Worst case scenario for me as I preferred a longer swim and bike.