Hickory Knob Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
McCormick, South Carolina
United States
Set-Up, Inc
42F / 6C
Sunny
Total Time = 00m
Overall Rank = 115/125
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 10/12
Pre-race routine:

Got up about 2.5 hours before the race start, our room was right next to the transition area, so I wasn't worried about setting up. Ate a banana and a bowl of granola cereal, had about two bottles of water and a small cup of coffee.
Event warmup:

Warmup - ha! It was about 40 degrees while I was lugging my bike and bag over to the transition area. I was wearing a trisuit with a polartec pullover and I was pretty cold. I ran about half a mile with a couple of short sprints and called it a day.
Swim
  • 42m 2s
  • 1500 meters
  • 02m 48s / 100 meters
Comments:

I wasn't disappointed with this swim, despite my painfully slow time. This was my first wetsuit swim, and first (nearly) mile OWS swim, so I took it easy and kept a pace that I knew would get me through the whole course. The first 400 meters or so were hard, I couldn't find my rhythm, but after that I was able to manage pretty well. Another first was drafting... with about 400 meters to go, I found someone who had caught me from the next wave, but they seemed to be going about my pace, so I was able to draft nearly the whole way in After climbing up the ladder to the pier and pulling myself up the ramp by the railings, I remembered that the transition area was still a good 200 yards straight up, via mostly hard, cold, and very spiky pavement. I realized that a good two minutes of the swim was the climb to T1 (at least for me).
What would you do differently?:

Nothing much. I just need to spend more time in the water... same story with me, I'm still a pretty weak swimmer.
Transition 1
  • 03m 46s
Comments:

I was pretty dizzy after the swim and the uphill barefoot hike up that steep hill, but I sat down and peeled it off my legs. It was certainly easier to remove while wet, and I had unzipped and had it around my waist before I entered the transition area. Bodyglide helped a LOT.
What would you do differently?:

Practice getting the wetsuit off.
Bike
  • 1h 46m 34s
  • 28 miles
  • 15.76 mile/hr
Comments:

It was cold, and this course felt a lot longer than it actually was. I'd been practicing 45-55 mile rides followed by a 3 mile run, and this was way worse than any practice, mostly because of the hills. I pulled on a long-sleeve jersey at the last minute as I was wet and shivering. It helped, but I may stuff some arm warmers somewhere on the bike for these colder rides.
What would you do differently?:

More practice on hills. I don't see many climbs like that around where I live now, but maybe I'll keep looking and do some focused work.
Transition 2
  • 03m 28s
Comments:

I went down hard on the pavement right before the dismount line... ouch. I was on one side of the bike still clipped into the left pedal and the volunteer was pointing at the dismount spot. I was just about to jump off and run and my front tire hit a raised reflector in the street. The wheels went out from under me and my backside hit hard. Of course my wife and 5-year-old daughter were right there, hoping to get a picture (which they did) and everyone ran up to me asking if I was OK. I pulled myself up (swearing) and limp-ran into the transition area. After I got my running shoes on I was really unsure about making it through the run, but I pulled myself together and started running.
What would you do differently?:

Not fall.
Run
  • 1h 03m 13s
  • 10 kms
  • 06m 19s  min/km
Comments:

I felt good about this run, even though my upper thigh was throbbing from that nasty fall before T2. The hills weren't as bad as they looked, either.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. I'm pretty happy with my running, considering I couldn't run a mile less than a year ago.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed a drink at the finish line and hugged my 5-yr-old daughter. What a high. I kept moving for a bit, walking around at the finish area, grabbing some food, etc. Then I showered and took my daughter to the playground for a bit.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Time spent practicing. Not much else...

Event comments:

I don't know if I'll be doing this race again next year, but it was really fun. I thought I was hooked on tris before, now I'm hooked on olympic distance!




Last updated: 2006-08-29 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:42:02 | 1500 meters | 02m 48s / 100meters
Age Group: 12/12
Overall: 114/125
Performance: Average
Suit: QR Ultrajohn
Course: Triangle, clockwise from pier
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Good
Waves: Good Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:46
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:46:34 | 28 miles | 15.76 mile/hr
Age Group: 10/12
Overall: 105/125
Performance: Below average
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: One word: hills.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence: 90
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 03:28
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Bad
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Below average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:03:13 | 10 kms | 06m 19s  min/km
Age Group: 10/12
Overall: 109/125
Performance: Average
Course: Out and back through hilly Hickory Knob State Park.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
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] 5