Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon - DuathlonOther

Uneventful. Kept planned pace in spite of many people taking off. I was planning on a long, successful day.

I finished BOP for the first run. Do people generally go all out for the first run of a Du? Was I too conservative? I could have gone under 14 minutes here, but had 54 miles of riding and 13 miles of running ahead of me.

Nothing

Uneventful
68/257 in M35-39

Long run from rack to transition exit in bike shoes. If I get tri shoes, I'll fasten them on the bike. Just not worth the risk with road shoes (strap opens toward drivetrain).

nothing

I raced really well, crushing the bike (21.4 mph vs. 19.4mph in 2007). I raced harder but still smart. I just focused on cadence (aiming for 95-105) and HR, keeping under 150. My bike avg HR was 147 this year accumulating good stretches of Z4 (150+) while passing the packs or going up the longer hills but never going anaerobic (160+).

I did my best to race clean. Being in the 15th wave, this was a challenge. I channelled my slight frustration to pass the packs. HR got a little high, but I just kept cruising. HR settled and I was able to pour it on more in the 2nd half. My HR had dropped to 131 by the end, as I backed off and spun the last 10 minutes, keeping cadence ~100rpm to prepare for a solid run.

Nothing

shorts got caught on seat as dismounting; ended up face-planting onto my bike...

flustered a bit going to rack, I paused to make sure I had everything before leaving to run

not be such a clutz

My run HR was 156 vs. 151 bpm in 2007. I stayed pretty much even pace/effort throughout, staying squarely in Z3 the whole race. I tried to find that 2nd gear and was only able to eek out a slight negative split in the 2nd half of the run.

I walked all but the last aid station to get fluids and nutrition (alternate Gu+water and Enduralyte+water) at every opportunity. I put ice down my back at every chance too

dis time pace AHR End HR
1 8:45 8:45 155 160 Hill 1
1 8:22 8:22 155 155
1 8:15 8:15 154 157
1 8:14 8:14 157 157
1 8:18 8:18 157 157
1 8:38 8:38 156 160 Hill 2a
1 8:14 8:14 156 156
1 8:12 8:12 156 156
1 8:19 8:19 156 158
1 8:03 8:03 157 160
1 8:25 8:25 158 160 Hill 2b
1 8:01 8:01 157 157
1.1 8:29 7:43 160 157

13.1 1:48:15 8:15 156

Push harder as I'm learning what it feels like to "race."

Organizers did a great job dealing with the chaos. They managed to get everyone to the run start after the swim was scratched. They also had to deal with tons of road construction to put together a nice bike course. The run course was well supported too. I agree with many others that this event is getting crowded.

The venue should get better as there is major development going on (new golf course, resort, trails, parking) occuring over the next couple of years.