Tri the Rock - TriathlonSprint


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Rockwall, Texas
United States
Ironhead Race Productions
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 18m
Overall Rank = 129/357
Age Group = M30-34
Age Group Rank = 20/34
Pre-race routine:

The usual: get up, eat some ramen & a Red Bull, and head out the door.
Event warmup:

I did the usual bike racking & transition setup, nothing special.
Swim
  • 05m 5s
  • 300 yards
  • 01m 41s / 100 yards
Comments:

I put down a time of 4:40 and was in 46th place in line. That means 45 people ahead of me thought they could break 4:40, or 45 people were lying. Either way I didn't care, I had my race to run and wasn't going to worry about anybody else. I started off with the traditional Rockwall Cannonball, then got to swimming. The whole race was supposed to be at top effort, and I definitely started out that way on the swim. I bet my first 50 was in under 40 seconds, I was hauling *ss. I slowed down as things went on, but a 5:05 which includes getting out of the pool and running across the mat means I was hitting my max effort(or very close). I was passed by 1 guy, but that's the only contact I had with anyone throughout the swim.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Transition 1
  • 01m 56s
Comments:

Strap, shirt, sunglasses, garmin, helmet, shoes, gone.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Bike
  • 45m 2s
  • 13.75 miles
  • 18.32 mile/hr
Comments:

The blowout continued on the ride where my HR was sitting in the 160s & 170s pretty much the whole time. I had to pull back just a little on the bike because I could tell I'd be toast on the run; I miscalculated how many hills there were on this ride. It was definitely hillier than I recalled, so I had to dial it down a bit for a few minutes on the back stretch. Craig passed me about halfway through the bike; I was hoping I could hold him off until the run, but no dice. That bastard is fast these days.

18.3 is solid, no real complaints.
What would you do differently?:

Not sure, maybe lay off a little on the uphills so I could keep pushing on the flats.
Transition 2
  • 01m
Comments:

I put down the best flying dismount yet. I didn't even break stride running into T2, and I passed a guy at the red line in the process(later b*tch!). I was very happy about that dismount.

The peanut gallery - and by gallery, I mean Jen, Gary, & a couple other BTers - had a field day with me putting on socks for a run shorter than a 5k. These feet are prima-donnas, they need things a certain way or they protest with a vengeance. Regardless, a 1 minute T2 is blazing for me so I'm happy.
What would you do differently?:

Suplex a few spectators off the top of the porta-potty.
Run
  • 24m 55s
  • 2.78 miles
  • 08m 58s  min/mile
Comments:

I decided to keep pouring it on as I felt pretty good going out. I walked at the aid station to get a little gatorade, but other than that I was pushing hard. I was hoping to keep my run at or under a 9:20 pace, and early on I could tell that was going to be achievable. I felt strong coming out on the run, it was a good feeling. I saw Karen about 1.3 miles in as she was doing her workout out there. She asked if I'd take longer than her 20 minutes she had left to run, to which I emphatically replied 'NO'. I was 15 minutes from the end, tops, and I felt like I had more in me. She went running off to make it to the finish line before I did(I was maybe 3 minutes out from the turnaround) and I picked up the pace even more. The last mile, I was averaging about an 8:30 pace. It was a good run.
What would you do differently?:

I would have slapped Karen on the butt and seen if she could catch me.
Post race
Event comments:

The swim is fine(it's about what you'd expect from a pool start), the bike was fine, but the run had issues. For starters, it wasn't marked well. Several of the top guys lost some time because they couldn't tell which way to go on the run back into the finish(this was fixed prior to me getting back there) due to a lack of signage. That, and there was a 90 degree turn right before the finish from pavement to grass that quite a few people ate it on. Those are the only things that kept this race from being great; otherwise it was your standard well-stocked, well-assisted Ironhead race. Jack delivers a consistent product, and that consistency is appreciated.


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Last updated: 2008-02-25 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:05:05 | 300 yards | 01m 41s / 100yards
Age Group: 17/34
Overall: 85/357
Performance: Good
Suit:
Course:
Start type: Inside Pool Plus:
Water temp: 78F / 26C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:56
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:45:02 | 13.75 miles | 18.32 mile/hr
Age Group: 21/34
Overall: 111/357
Performance: Average
Ave HR: 166 Max HR: 194
Wind: Little
Course: rolling hills
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 95
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:00
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:24:55 | 02.78 miles | 08m 58s  min/mile
Age Group: 21/34
Overall: 151/357
Performance: Good
Ave HR: 173 Max HR: 187
Course: Some off-road running, some paved.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4