Wasaga Beach Triathlon - Give-It-A-Tri - TriathlonOther

We starting from the sand which was new for me. I hadn't really trained a lot I knew the run was going to be difficult. I placed myself closer to the water where the sand was not that soft and merged with the bulk of the runners just before we got on the paved part of the course. Once on the road, I checked my Edge 305 but I couldn't make any sense of it. All I knew was that I was going faster than usual and by the time I got to the turning point I started to get tired. The second half on the run was harder, I was getting tired and a bit frustrated being passed by other athletes but I tried to stay focused and run my race. There was still a bike portion and another run ahead of me.

I think I did the best I could considering the small amount of training. Good run, fast (for me) but still able to go through transition reasonably well.

The transition was slower then I expected because I was tired but went well with no events. Jumped on the bike OK, the area was a bit crowded and I had to slalom my way out through the athletes trying to get on their bikes. I noticed the no passing sign and hesitated a bit before getting up to speed, the riders ahead of me were going slow and I was anxious to gear up.

Practice the transition on a regular basis, it's part of the race and there are a zillion of things that can go wrong.

I am still not sure how long the no passing zone was. Getting out of the transition was kind of a mess, riders all over the place trying to get on their bikes or on their bikes struggling to clip in. I found my way out and ended up behind a rider going way to slow. I really wanted to speed up and I was trying to figure out what to do, I was thinking fast, no passing zone, he's to slow, watch out for drafting, few more riders ahead, they are slow as well... I decided to start passing and yield "on the left". The guy answered "no passing zone". I was thinking "well, then gear up" and before I finished my thought another rider passed me. I said to my self that's it and from that point on all I remember was "on the left, on the left..."
I loved the bike part of the race. Fast, high cadence, no hesitation. I was chasing and passing one by one all the riders I could on that short 10k ride. Just before the turning point I slowed down a bit and I was passed by two riders but only for a short period of time. I geared up and climbed standing passing them again. I knew I would have time to recover on the downhill and use my weight in my advantage. On the second part of the bike course I managed to catch my breath on the downhill and build up the pace again on the flats. I finished strong, I unclipped in time but waited too long to prepare my jump of the bike and the volunteers in front of the gate basically stood in my way yelling at me to dismount. I didn't make my intentions clear and they were only trying to make sure I will dismount before the gate. I came to a full stop before dismounting.

Check the course before the race, the no passing zone was unclear to me and I could have been penalized/disqualified.
Need more brick workouts to learn how to pace myself on the bike. I pushed way to hard and had very little energy left for the run.
Practice jumping off moving bike.

Running with the bike and racking the bike was good. Only when I start putting the running shoes on I realized how tired I was. My heart rate was way up and I was breathing heavily. Running out of the transition was difficult and I knew I was in trouble. I hit the wall just before the exit from T2 on the sandy area. I stopped for a few seconds and I heard someone encouraging me "keep going, step on that mat". That helped a bit and I start running again to get out of the transition area.

Train, brick workouts.

I decided to walk the aid station and catch my breath for a minute. As soon as I could, I believe less then a minute, I start running again. I managed to get in some sort of pace, not for too long though. As soon as I got to the sand area between the boardwalk an the paved area I struggled again. One by one people were passing me but I couldn't care less. All I wanted was to keep running and finish the race. Just before the turning point I saw this guy I thought was racing the same division. He was about 200 meters ahead of me and it seemed he was struggling with the run as well. I picked up the pace thinking I might be able to catch him. It didn't work and I had to slow down again. Not long after that another athlete passed me and I noticed his age marked on his calf, 60 years old. One more attempt to speed up but I had no energy left, any change in speed was just painful. Once again I had to slow down and stick with my pace. I made it over the sandy area and I was back on boardwalk, the last leg of the run. I could feel someone running right behind me and when she finally decided to pass she encouraged me to keep going. I was too tired and in too much pain to notice the face or the BIB nr but whoever you are THANK YOU! That encouragement was exactly what I need it to find the last drop of energy and cross the line with a huge smile on my face.

Other the the obvious training, I think I did the best I could to survive the run. In spite of the struggle it never crossed my mind to stop racing. All I wanted was to catch my breath and find a way to continue.

Stretching, hydrating an some food.


Lack of training.



I entered the race with only 3 run workouts, 2.5k each at an easy pace. I knew I wasn't ready and I expected the run was going to be difficult. The idea was to experience a triathlon before the long winter, but I guess my competitive nature made me push the limits a bit making the last run really painful. I am happy with the results considering the short time I had to prepare for the race. I even got a medal for racing in Clydesdale, a nice thing to remind me of my first Duathlon. However, I am realistic about its value and I am aware of how much work I have ahead for the next season.