Greenwood Triathlon - Triathlon


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Ninety Six, South Carolina
United States
Set Up Events
85F / 29C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 43m 29s
Overall Rank = 32/75
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 9/14
Pre-race routine:

We racked the bikes Friday night and drove the course. We ate at the Mill House (fantastic food)! Back at the hotel my wife realized she had not packed enough gu so we scrambled, luckily the guys at Emerald City Bikes (ECB) stayed open 45 minutes late so we could drive down to the shop and get the gu. We stayed at the holiday inn express which was about 6 minutes away from T2, got up at 0445 and ate steel cut oats, banana, and coffee. made the drive to T2 and setup T2. Half of T2 was flooded because the city sprinklers were spraying on high, this caused many problems for people having to leave their stuff in a puddle, in the spray zone, or wrapped in a bag. I was lucky and my T2 was clear of the flood. Buses ran from T2-T1 at 0530, 0600, and 0630. We got to T1 after a 20 minute bus ride. Finished setting up T1, setup event supplied cases of water since onsite water was limited. Took my anti-fatigues and a gu and got the bike tires pumped up by ECB.
Event warmup:

rode the bike for a couple miles (kicked the top off my nutrition bottle) and swam 100m from the banks of T1 to the swim start.
Swim
  • 45m 27s
  • 2000 meters
  • 02m 16s / 100 meters
Comments:

Again, so angry about the course being an extra 500 meters long. My speedsuit chaffed under both arms and the right side of my neck, it had never done that in training but it was very painful. My lower back cramped up with 500m to go. There were only 3 waves in the course; elites, age group, beginners. I drank way to much water and was frustrated mentally because my internal clock knew I was over 30 minutes of swimming so I was pretty upset by what I believed was a slow swim.
What would you do differently?:

bodyglide neck and arm pits to prevent chaffing. hopefully, setup events learns to mark the swim properly. not check out mentally after a perceived bad swim leg.
Transition 1
  • 01m 36s
Comments:

Bad job in TA, started putting my bike shoes on before I had my speedsuit off. Packed all my swim gear into plastic bag so it would be transported to T2.
What would you do differently?:

remember proper order of getting dressed.
Bike
  • 1h 14m 29s
  • 24.8 miles
  • 19.98 mile/hr
Comments:

I came out of the park and knew I wouldn't have my A race, my back was still cramped from the swim and I was struggling to stay aero, hip flexors were starting to cramp and a knot in my left shoulder made being on the base bar difficult. No matter what position I was in it hurt. I picked up a decent groove from mile 6 to 10 when it fell apart. I dropped a gu roctane and then a mile later while attempting a pass hit a seam in the bridge/road transition and almost endo'ed the bike. I held on, the rim and tire didn't suffer any damage but the water bottle I mounted behind the seat was gone. Again, big mental let down about losing nutrition and hydration. Tried to go into water conservation mode which hurt me on the run later. Miles 10-12 were on rough road and I couldn't stay aero because of vibrations. The last 12 miles were into a headwind the entire way and it felt like there was nothing but uphill, I was hurting and miserable at this time. Tried to put out all I had to have a 20mph bike (barely made it with rounding) I used bontrager aeolus wheels for this race. The gu plan was take on as soon as bike leg started and then at 8, 16, and 24 miles.
What would you do differently?:

hang onto nutrition and hydration, try to find a comfortable bike position (going to hilton head for a bike fit)
Transition 2
  • 01m 1s
Comments:

sock and shoes on, went with newton distance
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 47m 20s
  • 6.2 miles
  • 07m 38s  min/mile
Comments:

took a gu roctane and immediately felt great. i could feel the heat setting but the shade on the path was very nice. it seemed that i ran uphill both ways on the course. the guys at aid station 2/4 were too excited about dumping water the athletes, i got hit with 5 cups. this lead to my newtons becoming bricks and slowing me down even more. at mile 5 I hit the hill and just about broke, it wasn't huge I just had nothing in the tank. because of my drooped gu roctane on the bike I had to take a hammer gel at the half way point and it didn't give me the same boost (physically or mentally). by the end of the run I was spitting water out because I had drank too much at each of the 1st 5 aid stations trying to play catchup.
What would you do differently?:

wear shoes that don't become water logged bricks and don't over hydrate.
Post race
Warm down:

walked a miles or so to see my wife finish and tried to jog but my legs didn't work at this point.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

cramps/spasms, poor nutrition plan, and weak mental game. I knew from the list of names registered that the best I could do was 6th place in AG and that really affected me this race. chaffing really hurt on the run.

Event comments:

Rating this race is based heavily on the swim being so far off, the sprinklers flooding T2, and the threat that if you came into town you might have to stop because the train won't stop for athletes (setups events is going to redesign the course for next year). Overall this is a nice race in a great small town.




Last updated: 2014-06-19 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:45:27 | 2000 meters | 02m 16s / 100meters
Age Group: 9/14
Overall: 35/75
Performance: Below average
Suit: nineteen frequency
Course: The course is a counter clockwise rectangular loop beginning at the run finish location and ending a few hundred yards away at the transition area. Nothing beats the feeling of walking down the concrete stairs and into the water just before the start of the event. THE COURSE THIS YEAR WAS 1.2 MILES (FULL IRONMAN DISTANCE! HOW DO YOU GET AN EXTRA 500 METERS ON THE SWIM???) Also, the 1st leg of the swim is right into the sun, you are completely blind until you take a laft at the last buoy. At race briefing they said if you can't see then you are swimming in the right direction.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 85F / 29C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Bad
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 01:36
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:14:29 | 24.8 miles | 19.98 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/14
Overall: 36/75
Performance: Below average
Wind: Headwind
Course: The bike course now will head out of the park and start athletes on their journey toward the heart of Greenwood. The first 15 or so miles will roll along rural country roads while cutting through Ninety Six, SC. After the rural section of the course, athletes will begin to enter Greenwood City Limits just before encountering the transition area and Uptown Greenwood. the bike leg features 800 feet of climbing and 600 feet of downhill netting you 200 feet on the bike.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Bad
Race pace: Too hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:01
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Below average
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
00:47:20 | 06.2 miles | 07m 38s  min/mile
Age Group: 8/14
Overall: 37/75
Performance: Below average
Course: The run is still an out and back 10k affair - but this time the out and back is run mostly on a closed and paved running path called The Heritage Trail - part of the National Rails to Trails program. 100% of this run is closed to traffic. Aid stations are placed every mile and approximately 80% of the course is shaded. The entire run is on pavement and athletes finish adjacent to the transition area situated right beside Main Street Greenwood.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Too much
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 1
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
Good race? No
Evaluation
Course challenge Too hard
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 2