Texas State Aquarena Sprint Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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San Marcos, Texas
United States
80+F / 27C
Precipitation
Total Time = 1h 27m 10s
Overall Rank = 30/294
Age Group = M45-49
Age Group Rank = 6/21
Pre-race routine:

Reminder to self before reviewing this report in the future: This is a C race, in part a make-up of the canceled CapTexTri. No taper at all for this one, and I did a 1500 meter OWS and 27 mile hilly bike ride the day before.

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5 am wakeup. Muffin, Gatorade, and bannana breakfast. Left home about 6 am, 45 min drive.
Event warmup:

Swam a couple hundred yards before getting kicked out of the water. Swimming in this ecologically protected area is allowed only twice per year, and apparently they think a warm-up counts as a third time. A bit ridiculous that they don't want people to warm up!
Swim
  • 08m 21s
  • 500 meters
  • 01m 40s / 100 meters
Comments:

This is the coolest swim ever! In Aquarena Springs, a beautiful clear-water "lake". The water is so clear you can see all the way to the bottom. During warm-up I saw plenty of fish, and lots of plant life. An extra bonus is that you can see people's feet long before you reach them, and can easily avoid the breaststroke kick to the face.

The start is a TT type start, with each person leaving about 5 seconds apart. Its a surprisingly good way start a race given that you're almost never swimming in a crowd. I started #241, but the wait after the first swimmer entered was only about 20 minutes.

I dove in and just tried to maintain a long stroke and an even pace. I may have picked up the pace a bit on the second half. I'm sure I lost some time while enjoying the underwater view and not concentrating on the race...

I seemed to be swimming fairly straight so I didn't worry about sighting very often.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. I was happy with the result.
Transition 1
  • 02m 10s
Comments:

#5 of 21 in AG, #54 of 298 overall. My suit got stuck for a few seconds on the timing chip, but the removal was fairly fast. Most competitors weren't using wetsuits, so I lost some time to them.

My rubberbands didn't break on the first few pedals out of T1. Broke them with my hands. Ouch!
What would you do differently?:

Experiment with shorter rubberbands.
Bike
  • 51m 18s
  • 16 miles
  • 18.71 mile/hr
Comments:

It rained on and off the entire ride, which was actually quite nice as it cooled the air temperature and me. I tried to keep my cadence between 85 and 95 most of the ride. My training seems to be paying off as I passed far more people than pased me. Unfortunately I got passed by a few in my age group...

The only negative on the course was that car traffic would go slow behind some riders, not wanting to pass. So I had to pass a few cars on the right. :(

My HR monitor was beeping non-stop, but I didn't pay much attention to it. I unfortunately never glanced at it, so I really don't know what it was reading. My breathing was under control, other than on some of the hills.

I didn't know the course beforehand (map not published!), and I had forgotten to reset my bike computer after the last ride, so I really had no idea where I was on the course. The turnaround at 8 miles seemed to take forever to arrive!
What would you do differently?:

Note to self: Always reset bike computer before racing!
Transition 2
  • 01m 1s
Comments:

#7 of 21 in AG, 104 of 298 overall. I'm normally better in transition than this compared to others. I'm not exactly sure how I came out in only the top third overall..

I lost maybe 10 or 15 seconds by putting on socks (one of which I ripped while pulling it on!). Normally I wouldn't wear socks on a sprint, but I wanted to practice for longer races. (A 10 second drop in T2 would have placed me #4 in my AG.)
What would you do differently?:

Not much.
Run
  • 24m 20s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 07m 49s  min/mile
Comments:

My running is still poor compared to the other disciplines, but getting better. I ran at a 7:48 pace, a bit better than my last sprint of 8:08 three months ago.

My HRM was going nuts, beeping the whole run. Each time I glanced at it I was at about 170 or 171, just off the 180 that I calculated two months ago as my LT. I was pretty much going all out and couldn't seem to pick up the pace, breathing fairly heavily throughout. Oh, and it was hot and sunny (maybe at 85 degrees by then?) and I was starting to feel the heat too...


What would you do differently?:

Figure out how to turn off the HRM beeping.
Post race
Warm down:

Nothing really.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of any taper.

Event comments:

The great thing about this race is the swim. The race is worth doing just to swim in such clear water! Lots of volunteers on the ride and run, so mistakes were hard to make.

No security in the transition area. Guys with expensive bikes were probably worried.

Plenty of food afterwards, though I'm not sure people knew where it was. In the food area there was only warm soft drinks to drink.

The race benefits the Texas State University Triathlon Club. I think the triathlon was organized by college students this year (previously by Seidel Productions). Overall, I think they did a good job.




Last updated: 2007-06-28 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:08:21 | 500 meters | 01m 40s / 100meters
Age Group: 2/21
Overall: 14/294
Performance: Good
154 avg HR. I've never used this in the water before, so not sure how normal it is.
Suit: Sleeveless
Course: One end of Aquarena springs to other end. A relatively straight route, with an almost U-turn at the end.
Start type: Dive Plus: Shot
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:10
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:51:18 | 16 miles | 18.71 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/21
Overall: 42/294
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: An out-and-back, primarily through light rolling hills, with 2 o3 3 ninety degree turns to get to the main part of the course.
Road: Rough Wet Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 01:01
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:24:20 | 03.11 miles | 07m 49s  min/mile
Age Group: 8/21
Overall: 59/294
Performance: Good
Course: On asphalt, grass, and trails through golf course.
Keeping cool Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 3