Rolf Prima Tri at the Grove - Olympic Course - Triathlon


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Cottage Grove, Oregon
United States
Rolf Prima
72F / 22C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 30m 27s
Overall Rank = 9/53
Age Group = W 45-49
Age Group Rank = 1/7
Pre-race routine:

Got up at 5, Kashi, kefir, toast, and coffee for breakfast, headed to race site. (About a 30-40-minute drive away.)
Event warmup:

Easy jog for about ten minutes with a couple of strides. I wasted some time dithering about what wetsuit to wear--water temp was about 73 but air kind of cool (mid 50's). In the end decided to wear my sleeveless shortie to speed up transition. So ended up having only about five minutes of swim warmup time instead of the planned ten. Just swam out to the final turn buoy and back, then got in "line".
Swim
  • 27m 14s
  • 1500 meters
  • 01m 49s / 100 meters
Comments:

I got a pretty clean start and was able to swim in the clear most of the time. Swam for a long time with the same "pack" of women, just to the side. They did a good job of sighting, so that was useful. All the women started three minutes back of all the men, and I was surprised I didn't feel like I wasted a lot of time going around the BOP guys, which I usually do. I was swimming a very direct line between the buoys, actually touching a couple of them, and it seemed like most of the guys were swimming further off to the right. I even started to doubt my sighting, as some swimmers seemed to be 20-30 yards away to the right, but this was my fastest time by over two minutes on this course, so must have been doing something right. Some of those guys must have done way more than 1500m! Maybe they told the slower guys to "yield" or something??
What would you do differently?:

Not sure.
Transition 1
  • 01m 40s
Comments:

Fairly good transition. I didn't waste any time. My only issue was just past the mount line when I failed to clip in and had to stop and try again. Not sure why. The bike shoes are fairly new (bought them in early June) and I haven't ridden with them outside much. Plus the bike leg began uphill on a curve. I swerved and had to get off and mount again. Ugh!
What would you do differently?:

Practice clipping in with these shoes a bit more!
Bike
  • 1h 13m 31s
  • 25 miles
  • 20.40 mile/hr
Comments:

I felt very strong on the bike and this is my fastest both for this course and Oly in general by just over 3 minutes. I kept see-sawing with a group of three women who seemed to be members of the same tri club.They weren't in my age group but were strong riders who seemed to be going to right pace. Bigger women so I kept passing them on the uphills and being passed on the downhills! (Gravity doesn't do you many favors when you are 115 pounds.) One moment of excitement when my aerobottle ejected vertically over my head after I hit a big bump at about 4 1/2 miles. A nearby volunteer said she would get it so I just carried on. This meant all I had was my frame bottle (with Nuun Energy drink) so I had to wash down the gu with that. My stomach was not too happy about that, for some reason.
What would you do differently?:

Secure my aerobottle with a rubber band or zip-tie so it will not eject! That is a first. I have seen (and had) torpedo mount bottles eject, and even lost a few frame bottles on Vietnam's amazingly pot-holed roads, but I have never seen an aerobottle fly up. As I mentioned, some of the rural roads on this course are ROUGH! Just glad my tubes and tires held up.
Transition 2
  • 01m 8s
Comments:

Again, I didn't waste any time. But I think I was running quite slowly as it is painful right now to run barefoot. I probably should have kept my bike shoes on instead of showing off my flying dismount.
What would you do differently?:

Probably keep the bike shoes on. I've been having problems with Morton's neuroma, which basically means my toes and the area just under them hurt when I run. And what really is painful and aggravates it is running barefoot on a hard surface like concrete. Ouch! My new bike shoes are not as difficult to run in and probably would have protected my feet better. But have gotten in the habit of the flying dismount and just did it without thinking.
Run
  • 46m 54s
  • 10 kms
  • 04m 41s  min/km
Comments:

Not my best run. Legs felt okay after the bike and no cramping, but I was doing this in Hokas--right now they are the only shoe I can run on pavement on for prolonged periods without a lot of discomfort. Plus the gravel--if I hit that in my racing flats right now, might not be able to finish. The Hokas are comfortable but I'm used to running in much more minimal shoes (Kivara or other lightweight Saucony trainers) and find it difficult to get beyond an easy jog in them. Feels awkward and my legs fatigue much more easily. I also had some issues with nausea and sloshing stomach in the first half of the run due to having to wash down gu with Nuun rather than water after my aerobottle ejected on the bike leg.
What would you do differently?:

Just push it a little harder anyway. If I puke, I puke. So what? My best run on this course is almost 1:30 faster. If I had been within a minute of it, could have gone under 2:30, which has been a long-time goal.
Post race
Warm down:

No real warmdown. Just walked around for a while.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Being semi-injured, which affected the run to some extent. Other than that, just a few random silly things like having trouble clipping in and losing the aerobottle.

Event comments:

This is easily one of the most beautiful races I have done and, personally (okay, I am biased, since it's my "hometown" race) I think it is one of the most beautiful races in the world! Probably the only negative is that as the race has grown, they have added many, many categories now (sprint, Oly, aquabike, du, relays) plus prize drawings, so awards drag on and on. My race started at 8 AM, I finished around 10:30, and I think I didn't get my AG award till 1:30; awards probably wrapped up at 2. It can be a long day for children, elderly parents, and pets. But otherwise--it is a well-organized event that showcases the best of what this area has to offer. I'm so sad that I will be leaving Oregon (not my choice) and don't know if/when I'll be able to do this event in the forseeable future. But I was happy to have a good race and finally win my AG here this year,




Last updated: 2017-07-23 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:27:14 | 1500 meters | 01m 49s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/7
Overall: 12/53
Performance: Good
Suit: ProMotion Sleeveless Shortie
Course: Basically a big rectangle. They changed the direction from what was done last year and explained on the website. Counterclockwise instead of clockwise; most of the route paralleling the lake shore.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 73F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:40
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
01:13:31 | 25 miles | 20.40 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/7
Overall: 10/53
Performance: Good
NP was 171. I was aiming for 170-180; rough pavement and rolling hills made it hard to keep power steady, though. I was aiming for 170-180 on the flats and false flats, and hoped things would average out with the hills.
Wind: Some
Course: Small rolling hills for about first 4 1/2 miles around Cottage Grove Lake, turn onto rural road, new uphill (mostly false flat with a few short climbs) to turnaround at about 12 1/2 miles, net downhill back (mostly false flat) on mix of rural and Forest Service roads; around rest of lake with more rolling hills. Steep, short uphill and downhill just before finish. It's a fairly fast bike course but definitely not "flat"--about 350 feet total elevation gain and loss. Very rough surface on much of the rural road with some cracks and potholes and a "washboard" section, road around the lake is quite smooth.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence: 81
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:08
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:46:54 | 10 kms | 04m 41s  min/km
Age Group: 0/7
Overall: 6/53
Performance: Below average
Can't remember my splits. I do know that I thought at the turnaround there was no chance to break 2:30, but I ended up being closer than I thought. Kind of disappointed with myself that I didn't. I'm not getting younger, don't race Oly very often, and don't know if I'll ever be able to now.
Course: Flat, out and back on forest service road with several short, rough gravel sections.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %?
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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