The Wildbear Sprint TRI/DUATHLON - TriathlonSprint


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Poland, Maine
United States
TRI-ME
70F / 21C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 19m 20s
Overall Rank = 20/162
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 5/21
Pre-race routine:

The race was in a state park, so they had to collect fees or passes to get everyone in. Problem was that they didn't open the park til 7, and they wanted everyone there by 6:30 or so. So we all waited in a line of cars outside the park - volunteers came to our cars to have us sign USAT waivers. When we drove into the park, more volunteers came up to the cars and gave us our race packets before we went to park. Not sure this was the most efficient way of doing this, but worked ok for a small race. My impatience was probably increased by the large soda I drank on the way to the race and the resulting urgent need for a bathroom, but I survived.
Event warmup:

Quick swim to adjust the wetsuit.
Swim
  • 09m 23s
  • 600 yards
  • 01m 34s / 100 yards
Comments:

I had a great swim. I was right in the middle of the pack for my wave, so there was some bumping, but after LP it seemed like no big deal. The swim felt so fast - it felt like I had just started swimming, and there was the first turn, then the second, then done. When I hit the beach I was right at 9 minutes, but they didn't mark the time til a little further up the beach.
Transition 1
  • 01m 45s
Comments:

The transition times are estimated - they were included in the bike time so the times are based on my own stopwatch. We had to run a little ways from the beach and through some woods to get to T1, so the time is higher than I would expect. I made the decision to go sockless for the first time ever, and this definitely made things go faster.
Bike
  • 47m
  • 16 miles
  • 20.43 mile/hr
Comments:

The first 4 miles were pretty good, had a little wind behind me, and the road was rolling. Had my average speed up to 21 by mile 4. Then came one of the nastiest hills I've ever ridden. Only about 1/4 mile, but crazy steep. Everyone was standing and grinding up this one. For those of you who know the devil hill at Mooseman - this hill would eat the devil hill for breakfast. By the time I hit the top, my average speed was down close to 18 mph, and I spent the rest of the ride getting it back up. The rest of the course was fair, with some rollers to slow you down here and there. There were four railroad crossings, which were fine except for one thing - there were actual trains running today! As I came up on one of the crossings there was a train going by, but I was lucky and the last car came into sight just as I was starting to slow down. I was able to cross without stopping, but some competitors at this race did have to stop and wait.

During the ride I started into a back and forth battle with this guy from Rhode Island who was in my age group. Passed him and was repassed by him 7-8 times. We exchanged a few good-natured comments along the way...
Transition 2
  • 00m 50s
Comments:

Again, this was the first time I went sockless, so it was a little awkward pulling my feet out of the shoes, but it went ok. Definitely worked well running barefoot into transition, slipping on my running shoes, and taking right off. The actual transition took all of a few seconds, the rest of the time was running into/out of the transition area.
What would you do differently?:

Practice getting my feet out of the shoes.
Run
  • 20m 23s
  • 3.1 miles
  • 06m 35s  min/mile
Comments:

The first mile felt a little slow - some of the trail was pretty sandy. Shortly into the first mile I missed a turn (I guess I was too busy watching where my feet were going to avoid roots and rocks) and heard a yell from Rhode Island guy - I circled back and now was behind him by 10-20 feet. I stayed a little behind him into Mile 2, where I passed him on a downhill and got about 20 feet ahead, but it didn't last. He re-passed me with about a mile to go. I managed to keep him from getting too far ahead, and was hoping to make a charge in the last stretch, but when I tried to catch him at the end he had the same idea and managed to hold me off and beat me by four seconds. On the up-side, there was another guy from my age group just behind me that I managed to hold off and beat him by 5 seconds.
Post race
Warm down:

Talked with Rhode Island guy, seemed like a nice guy. Eventually met up with Jeff (Jackemy) and Mike (MikeJ), had some watermelon, banana, water, and a brownie, hung out and waited to see results.

Event comments:

I had a goal of placing in my age group, and I thought this might be a good chance since it was a small local race. It didn't happen, as there were some pretty fast guys out there, and a lot of people in the 35-39 age group. Still, I'm very happy with this race. I felt like I gave it my best effort, and I'm really pleased with my times. I met most of my goals for this race: Under 1:40/100 on the swim, and under 7 minute miles for the run. I had a goal of 22 mph on the bike, but given this course I'm happy with my bike time, which was good enough for 4th in my age group and 18th overall.

It was very nice to meet some other BTers - this was MikeJ's first ever tri, and he put in some excellent times, as did Jackemy. Also got to meet local superstar Kurt Perham, who likely would have won the race if not for a flat on that nasty hill.

The best part of the day: When I got home, my 5 year old daughter Catie asked me if I had "won". I told her that I didn't place in my age group, but I came in 5th and did my best. She disappeared for a few minutes then came back with a handmade "5th place certificate" which she presented to me. Best award ever.

Link to race pictures:
http://www.printroom.com/ViewGallery.asp?userid=eszalajeski&gallery...




Last updated: 2006-08-20 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:09:23 | 600 yards | 01m 34s / 100yards
Age Group: 8/21
Overall: 44/162
Performance: Good
Suit: Full suit
Course: Counterclockwise triangle.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current:
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:45
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:47:00 | 16 miles | 20.43 mile/hr
Age Group: 4/21
Overall: 18/162
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Mostly rolling, but with one nasty big hill at mile 4.
Road: Potholes Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:50
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:20:23 | 03.1 miles | 06m 35s  min/mile
Age Group: 7/21
Overall: 29/162
Performance: Good
Course: Mostly off road on decent trails, mostly flat.
Keeping cool Good Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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