Winding Trails Offroad Tri Series - TriathlonOlympic

Not generally poor, but a couple of stupid things. Still had to tie the shoes, which wasn't so bad. Bad decision on the gloves. Decided i was taking to long so i just took them with me. The trail was very bumpy, roots etc. there was no way i was getting these on riding no handed.

Put the gloves on in transition. Forget about the water bottle, bento box. Would have to stop. Well maybe the water bottle in case i wiped out, but the bento box, forget it, it just kept bouncing around, thought i was going to lose it, or the stuff in it. Most annoying of all I kept hitting it with my legs. Better to go bare bones in the woods. It's a short ride.

I felt like a kid !! Fairly technical ride, up and down hills, some pretty sharp corners. Much different from the road race, in that, there were a lot of position changes throughout the race. I did a fair amount of passing on the up hills. Unfortunately i think i gave up quite a few places (a) at the beginning putting on my gloves, the (b) at one of the last corners where my right shoulder clipped a tree. I've got a gash going from my right shoulder all the way around my back. Ripped the top shirt, luckily the new tri shirt didn't rip. Going to try to get a pic to post ;D

Try not to hit the tree :) Few things on the bike.
1. Get some knobby tires, mine were ok, but better dirt tires would definitely help.
2. Maybe let some air out, my bike was bouncing around like crazy on the roots. Felt like a Jack Hammer operator.
3. Shoes/Peddles - i have clipless, but it made me a little nervous. On the other hand, they are so loose i kept popping out. Think i need to put on some real grippy peddles, but no clips. Really need a different pair of shoes.
4. Of course the gloves - put them on. Tho, i don't think it mattered since transition time was lumped into each section.
5. Glasses - decided to forgo the sunglasses, becasue it was pretty dark. Need to get some clear lenses. Got some mud in my eye, which i could deal with, a tree branch in the eye would have been a different story.

Had a hard time racking the bike. Really wasn't too bad, but not at all smooth. I didn't have a clear idea of what to do first. And i had to tie my running shoes twice.

Definitely need the speed laces.
Practice transitioning at home.

I felt i pretty much went as hard as i could here. My average HR was 180 overall, I don't know where it topped out. The highest i recall seeing was 183, the lowest was around 179. Caught up to this older guy walking up a hill toward the end of the course and passed him. Then he passed me on the flat. This happened about 4 more times. He ended up finishing ahead of me.

I wish there was something i could have done better. Other than the transition, i'm not sure i could have pushed any harder. There were some people walking the hills that finished before me. I'm not sure that tactic would have worked for me, but i really just wanted to run the whole thing. I thing i handled the hills pretty well, i passed a few people.

Just a quick stretch.


transition, transition, transition.
that and hitting a tree when i was almost done with the bike leg.


I loved this race. I have to say i'm a bit disappointed in my overall standings. However, going into the race i pretty much figured this is the time i would finish in (actually figured higher if we were to have swam). I was really overly anxious and felt unprepared for the race. The thunder storms and uncertainty of swimming vs. running really had me not knowing what to do. Set up the transition and let my stuff get all wet, wait and see if it stops. Overall i was very confused, much more than i had to be. It was really a very low key simple race. Chip and a number (no running number, no helment number). I think I'm overpreparing and it's confusing me. Making too many decisions at the race. That being said, i should have brought an umbrella and some large plastic garbage bags. Then i could have gotten setup in the rain.

I'm thinking my transition times are what slowed me down, that plus the two stops (gloves & tree) on the bike, because i passed a lot of people on the bike trail, but a lot when by while i was standing still. On the run i passed a few people (maybe 5 or more) i only remember 2 or 3 people passing me. There were a couple of people that just came blowing by everyone on the run. I'm not sure what the deal with them was. Maybe they were just really bad bikers ?

I can't wait to do this AGAIN !!