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 Swim
Comments: I knew this was my weak link heading into the race, but I had done a few swims up to a mile and felt that 400 m would be a breeze. The pond was as still as a pool and the water was warm. Perfect conditions. I started strong and on the outside so I didn't have to deal w/ too many elbows. However, even though I tried to swim smoothly and stay calm, my breathing started to get irregular. On top of that, my navigation was horrible. I was veering to the right constantly, and easily ended up swiming an extra 100+ meters. Once in the water the buoys seemed so far away. After rounding the first buoy I had to do some back stroke to calm down and catch my breath. I'd flip over and get maybe 50m in before going back on my back. My normal 2min/100m pace was doubled. While I passed a few people from the previous wave that started 4 minutes ahead, I still was horrified by my performance. What would you do differently?: Swim more in open water. I'm comfortable in open water, but without a wall to push off on and a black line to help navigate, I was out of my element.  Transition 1
Comments: This transition time looks long, but it includes an uphill barefoot 400m run from the water to transition. I had practiced T1 so I felt comfortable. When I finally got up that darn hill, I flew through most of it just as planned. The only problem was that I put my helmet on backwards! This led to some difficulties fastening it. Also my glasses got pretty foggy, but that was easy to fix. 103/160 What would you do differently?: One of these days I'll learn to transition with my shoes already on the bike. Also, pay attention to how I lay down my helmet so it goes on correctly.  Bike
Comments: I knew I had to make up for a bad swim time, so I went out hard. I'm a novice cyclist, so I don't go into aero yet. No, this was all going to be on how much I could handle the pain. I started off fast and started passing people quickly. I was reaching 27-28 mph on the downhills, and kept it around 10 on the uphills. Fortunately it was a short enough course that I could ride hard the entire way. Other than a couple akward turns, I was suprised at how well I did. What would you do differently?: I really need to find some hills close to home on which I can practice. I lost a lot of time trying to climb. I also need to work on my handling. I had to significantly slow down for all turns. Finally, I will learn to use my aero bars before my next race. That would have been very helpful on the downhills! Transition 2
Comments: This transition went very well. I don't use socks for the ride or the run, so it was off with one set of shoes and on with the others in seconds. The longest part of the transition was running the bike into the T area w/ my bike shoes still on. 82/160 What would you do differently?: As before, I eventually need to learn to keep my shoes clipped in.  Run
Comments: The run went suprisingly well. I know I'm a good runner, so I was really trying to take advantage. The start was very wobbly as my legs were jello from the bike, and the run starts on a pretty big downhill. Almost took a spill, but my legs adjusted quickly. I got into a rythm pretty quickly and just concentrated on pushing as hard as possible. What would you do differently?: Make sure my laces are a little tighter on my shoes. I'd also push a little harder. Post race
Warm down: Not much. I walked around some and drank water. What limited your ability to perform faster: Mosly my lack of swim experience and lack of time riding hills. Event comments: Almost everybody left after the race. The crowd at the awards ceremony was tiny, and nobody cheered. It was only the people who stayed around for their own award. There was a small booth for the awards, and the guy w/ the microphone was standing 100m away and couldn't see what was going on. Otherwise, the race itself was well organized. For now my times are estimates as offical times have not been posted! Last updated: 2007-06-14 12:00 AM
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80F / 27C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 89/160
Age Group = First Timer
Age Group Rank = 2/8
I went through all of my gear the night before to make sure I had everything and that it was all in working order. Ate a large dinner early and hydrated the rest of the evening. Other than that I just went to bed early and tried to fall asleep. While that wasn't easy, I went over my transitions in my head over and over. This helped on race day and helped me fall asleep.
I was the first person to show up to the race and was the first person in the transition area. The racks were divided by division, but I was able to get a spot on the very end of the FT rack with a lot of room for my gear. I laid it all out and practiced the transitions a few times.
I did a short run (1.5 miles) with a few pickups for a warmup about 45 min before race time. I was worried about losing my position on the rack so I didn't do a bike warmup. I don't know how much that affected me later on, but I feel it was worth keeping my space in the transition area. After doing the short run, I went down to the water and swam about 100 meters. I didn't feel comfortable in the water. This was foreshadowing for what was to come later. At least the water was nice and warm...