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 Swim
Comments: No swim.  Transition 1
Comments: I have my road bike shoes so transition was sitting on the ground, putting on my socks/shoes then running off with the bike. It is not easy running in road shoes. It was so cold that I couldn't imagine coming out of the cold water then trying to manage in even colder air, and the wind chill riding with wet clothes. Ouch that sounds painful.  Bike
Comments: Originally I was planning on taking it easy for the first loop to warm up (since it usually takes me about 5 miles to get loose) then start pushing it more. But my first loop I saw two terrible spills and that put the fear of God into me... i.e., don't be too crazy. My left calf was twitching after 2 loops. I don't know why. So I had to ensure that I was finishing the downstroke and kept stretching it out. I actually was feeling pretty good on the bike. I just had to remember, "DON'T TOAST THE QUADS." One thing I focused on was making sure to drink enough. I made sure to drink an entire bottle during the bike segment. It was really great having those highschool kids volunteering and cheering us on, they were full of spirit and cheered mightily. Made it fun. By the 5th loop my left glute/upper hammy started to tighten (the one I strained 3 weeks prior playing softball of all things). By the last loop I was really feeling it. The numbered tape really was handy. After each lap I peeled off the numbered tape in order. I like to daydream when I'm riding so for sure I would've lost track if I didn't have this trick. What would you do differently?: I've been having problems with right knee pain after biking so I'd been messing with the cleat placement. Something must still not be right so I need to get re-fitted... maybe after I install aero-bars. Otherwise no complaints. Just need to get into better shape... and not play softball :) Transition 2
Comments: I sat down on the ground to change shoes since my bike shoes has that ratchet action. I had my running shoelaces pre-tied and I put them on with a shoe horn. I did this at my last tri and it seems to work great. No need for the quick lace system. My glutes/upper hamstrings (both sides) tightened up badly while I was sitting. I could barely get up. I ran out of transition rubbing my arse with both hands trying to loosen it up. What would you do differently?: Maybe the problem is that I rode the full 24 mi on the drops, which I never do during training. I need to train on the drops and see if that different position causes my peculiar muscle issue.  Run
Comments: I got out of T2 very sore with both upper hamstrings/glutes very tight from the bike. Eventually it warmed back up and my running was okay. My splits were about 30 sec slower than my goal, but I just laid low for the first 3 miles. The 4th mile I started picking up the pace but started having quad cramps toward the end. That's when I started knocking down the power gels and water at every stop, and even stopped once to stretch briefly. The 6th mile I said I'm leaving it all on the course. I started taking deep breaths and picked up the pace. I told myself I would finish strong or die trying. Cramping was manageable and I passed a few folks along the way. Last split was 7:06min/mi, wow. What would you do differently?: Probably start drinking more fluids and power gels right away and often during the run. Taking deep breaths seemed to help with the cramping pain. Post race
Warm down: I was cold, my quads and hamstrings/glutes were sore, and I was tired from only 4 hours of sleep the prior night. I put on my pullover and got a bite to eat. I sat on the curb with my knees up to stretch my upper hams/glutes. Ariane from GGTC saw me and we chatted a bit. It was great to see a familiar face and she's always happy it seems. She mentioned that the medical tent was full from people crashing on the bike. Yep I believe that. I didn't stretch nearly enough post-race. I basically ate, walked around some of the booths, then went straight home and a hot shower. What limited your ability to perform faster: It was good to get out and get a baseline of where I'm at. Getting hurt 3 weeks out probably affected my run. But clearly I need to spend more time in the saddle, as I have been neglecting that part of the training. Need to figure out how to fit it in my schedule as I don't like to bike in the dark. Event comments: I think most people were bummed about losing the swim segment. But the Bay was a mess and we need to keep things in perspective. I would have preferred a run-bike-run rather than just a bike-run. I really appreciated all the volunteers who came out to help and cheered everyone on. These kids were enthusiastic and made a bitterly cold and painful race quite pleasant. Last updated: 2007-09-24 12:00 AM
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TriCalifornia
50F / 10C
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Normally I have my friend/tri mentor/coach DC around for these races so I don't need to worry about driving or directions, or what to eat and when, or anything. I just copy whatever he does. And he'll always have tips like don't forget to roll your socks over your wet feet, or bring a water bottle to rinse your feet, etc etc.
But this time he had another race so I was solo. Cut the imbilical cord, kicked out of the nest and time to fly. So my pre-race routine was doubly nervous. I know already that I get nervous before races so to bring toilet paper and get to the race early since I always gotta go again no matter what I did at home. Well not this time, I went multiple times at home and was all clear for racing. Is this TMI?
The swim portion of the race was cancelled since some damn Asian boat driver rammed his rig into the Bay Bridge, spilling 58,000 gallons of oil in the Bay. This sucked as this was my training/checkpoint race in prep for the HIM in March. I.e., swimming 1500m in race conditions.
So it was a bit difficult getting psyched for the race, but I made the best of it. I got there early to get a relatively decent transition spot, but it wasn't necessary. The spots are numbered. That's good to know for next time.
The parking was a bit of a walk from the transition area. Some folks rode their bikes, but I just strolled, spending the time thinking through the race and what I need to do.
A good tip from enginerd that I remembered. I cut 6 pieces of tape and wrote out numbers 1-6 on paper, then taped this to the bike bars. This was to keep track of each lap.
It was freggin' cold, definitely low 50's. First wave was supposed to be 7:15, but it was delayed to 7:30. My wave slipped from 8 to 8:15.
In lieu of the swim, each wave had to start at the transition mat by the water's edge. Then sprint to T1, change into biking shoes then head on out. You had to start barefooted, no shoes or socks.
I stretched a lot well before, then 15 before my wave I started jogging to warm up. Then took off my shoes and warmup clothes and started getting my feet aclimated to the hard cold asphalt, running a bit more (not enough).