Steamboat Express Triathlon (Olympic, Sprint & 10k run) - TriathlonSprint


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San Dimas, California
United States
74F / 23C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 03m 25s
Overall Rank = 47/174
Age Group = 50-54
Age Group Rank = 6/11
Pre-race routine:

Up at 0530 for breakfast of Ensure (Wild Berry, um, um good) and a bowl of Cheerios. The drive to San Dimas took a little over an hour. Check in was well organized as usual with this event. The only recommendation would be to add some Andy Gumps...one bathroom just doesn't cut it.
Event warmup:

The Olympic Distance Course was running late, which carried over and made the Sprint Course start late. Not too bad of a wait, but I had done stretching and swam a little to warm-up, then had to wait about 20 minutes before the start of our race. The best part of the warm-up was a goose that attacked one of the swimmers. With everyone waiting and laughing, one brave guy jumped in the water and choked the bird out. The bird was didn't give up and twice came back for more chokings. Finally, it got the message and swam off. This loosened everyone up and lots of video footage was taken of the mad-goose attack.
Swim
  • 07m 39s
  • 400 yards
  • 01m 55s / 100 yards
Comments:

The water conditions were very good. I tended to stay out of the pack and off to the right. I'm not sure how good of strategy this was because I think it added about 20-50 yards onto my swim. Nevertheless, the swim was good, except there seemed to be a lot of people in the water from the previous wave, and I had to swim over a few poor souls (not like it hasn't happened to me before, but it is an awful feeling when you're new to the sport and get clobbered by someone). Also, the two events (Olympic and Steamboat) merged at the swim finish which meant more bodies in a smaller area. Overall, it was a good swim course.
Transition 1
  • 02m
Comments:

From the beach to the transition area was about a 100 yards. I was able to get my wetsuit halfway off when I got my rack, however, my suit got caught up on my ankle chip and it seemed like it took a long time for me to get my suit off. Once I was able to slow down, I realized why it was getting caught up and fixed the problem, got it off and was able to get my bike gear and go. I felt like I spent way too much time in the T1. Time is estimated.
Bike
  • 33m 22s
  • 8.39 miles
  • 15.09 mile/hr
Comments:

Once out of the transition area I got into a good rhythm on my bike. Having previously biked this course there were no surprises on the course and I felt good during the entire ride.
Transition 2
  • 01m
Comments:

Talk about a disaster. When I got to my rack there was already one bike on the rack. As I went to rack my bike, the entire rack fell down. Now my bike is somewhat old, but the other bike was like really new and expensive, so I couldn't just leave it on the ground. Once again, it seemed like it took forever to get out of the transition area. I got the rack back up and both bikes on it, then went to put my shoes on and stepped in my water bucket causing it to soak my socks (oh well). Finally, I was able to get out, and didn't look back to see if our bikes were still up. Yikes! Time is just an estimate as I haven't figured out how to put forever into mm:ss
What would you do differently?:

I guess prior to racking my bike, I could look and make sure the legs to the bike rack are fully expanded so the rack doesn't fall over when I rack my bike. I was definitely not expecting that to happen, so I need to expect the unexpected to happen...Murphys Law?
Run
  • 21m 38s
  • 2.49 miles
  • 08m 41s  min/mile
Comments:

Having run this course before I knew what to expect this time. My run was okay, I'd obviously liked to have ran faster, but didn't. I felt pretty good with my run and was at least able to finish with a sprint.
Post race
Warm down:

The finish area had lots of volunteers and refreshments, e.g., water, oranges, bananas, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, etc. After walking around and stretching a little, I partook in the sandwiches and fruit.

Event comments:

Once again the organizers and volunteers did an outstanding job. This is a great series of races for those that are just beginning and those who want to do an Olympic distance course. The weather was great, the water was perfect, the food was delicious. The only negative experience were some idiots on horses on the trail during the run course. I don't blame the organizers as much as the people on the horses not paying attention to what is going on and staying off the trails until the event is over. Other than that, I'll be back next year in May of 2008.




Last updated: 2007-06-10 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:07:39 | 400 yards | 01m 55s / 100yards
Age Group: 1/11
Overall: 28/174
Performance: Good
Suit: Full 3x2
Course: Shore start around a buoy (left turn) that was about 50 yards from shore, then a straight shot to the finish line.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:00
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:33:22 | 08.39 miles | 15.09 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/11
Overall: 47/174
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Loop course around the lake, moderate hills, but no significant climbs or downhills.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:00
Overall: Bad
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Bad
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:21:38 | 02.49 miles | 08m 41s  min/mile
Age Group: 7/11
Overall: 67/174
Performance: Average
Course: Trail run, slightly hilly, but shaded. The run finish with about a half mile run on the sidewalk along the beach front.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4