Patriot Half Triathlon - Triathlon


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East Freetown, Massachusetts
United States
Sun Multisport Events
75F / 24C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 30m 56s
Overall Rank = 381/559
Age Group = M45-49
Age Group Rank = 46/59
Pre-race routine:

Designer Protein, banana, sips of coffee and Nathan electrolyte drink on the way to the race. Arrived 1:35 before my wave start.
Event warmup:

Did a 15 minute warm up swim at 6pm the night before the race. Water temp was ideal - warmer than communicated. Felt comfortable without doing a warm up swim the morning of the race.
Swim
  • 49m 17s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 20s / 100 yards
Comments:

Even pace, consistent with OWS practices in the last month and a half. Garmin read 1.35 for distance and has been accurate. Assume that slow time was due to poor navigation or keeping too far outside of the crowd (did attempt to remain on the right to avoid crowd).
Overall very happy to swim continuously without panic in my first half IM swim.
What would you do differently?:

Start out front (needed to avoid a kick in the face at the beginning), and keep a tighter line with the buoys.
Transition 1
  • 03m 28s
Comments:

A little disoriented coming out of the water. Took off suit, put on helmet and shoes (no socks), Swig of water and jogged out of T1.

One mistake - forgot to bring tissues. Allergies kicked up on the bike and caused issues in the aero position. S-Rockets would not have helpedwith my nose leaking like an open faucet.
What would you do differently?:

Not much (except tissues) - needed a porta potty but none inside T1. Porta potties in Bike leg shortly after bike mount.
Bike
  • 3h 17m 21s
  • 56 miles
  • 17.03 mile/hr
Comments:

Stopped for porta potty 25 yrds after bike mount. Fell off bike after stopping and somehow dropped the chain (duh!). Long p stop followed by a few minutes putting the chain back on the small ring. Got a little flustered and hands very greasy.
The rest of the bike was pretty smooth. The course was pretty flat. Cadence was kept pretty even. Actual time in line with projected time.
What would you do differently?:

Not drop the chain going to a porta potty.
Transition 2
  • 05m
Comments:

Took a little extra time to get bearings. After I got off the bike I immediately felt quads stiffening up. Needed to get composure before the run.

One big mistake - forgot to take S-Caps from bento box. These would have helped on the run.
What would you do differently?:

Make sure to take S-Caps and put in jersey back pocket.
Run
  • 2h 15m 51s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 10m 19s  min/mile
Comments:

This is where the lack of experience and training (being my first Half) really showed. Quads cramped painfully within the first half mile. Weather was beginning to get hot. S-Caps would have helped. Took a Powerbar Gel and it really worked to basically eliminate the cramps. Kept a slow sub-10:00 pace for quite a while. Walked every water stop and took Heed. Although very slow (blisters began to form in my left foot), kept going without walking other than stops. Caught up to a friend with 4-5 miles to go and ran in together. Made the run much more bearable, and the race experience even better. Took another gel with 3 to go and hung on to finish!.
What would you do differently?:

More salt - hot day. More training, experience off a long bike.
Post race
Warm down:

Not sure what some are talking about - the food was great - lagsana, ham, beans, salad, chicken salad sandwiches, soda, ice tea, dessert - all you can eat on one plate. I am not expecting 5 stars after six and a half hours of triathlon. The meal hit the spot. Ate with training partners and swapped race stories - could not have been happier.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

First 70.3 - more training time - Bike, run and swim in that order. Achieved number one goal of finishing. Would have loved to be closer to 6, but really, no complaints.

Event comments:

Sun Multisports put on a great event - very well organized and supported. Everyone said great things about this race, and it did not disappoint. I would definitely do this race again.




Last updated: 2012-10-26 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:49:17 | 2112 yards | 02m 20s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/59
Overall: 0/559
Performance: Average
Suit: Orca S3
Course: U-shaped out and back, counter-clockwise.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:28
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:17:21 | 56 miles | 17.03 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/59
Overall: 0/559
Performance: Average
Wind: None
Course: Mostly flat, some rollers.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 05:00
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
02:15:51 | 13.1 miles | 10m 19s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/59
Overall: 0/559
Performance: Average
Course: Rolling - many gradual uphills/downhills - not an easy run course.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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