Hagg Lake Triathlon - Sprint Distance - TriathlonSprint


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Forest Grove, Oregon
United States
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 25m 39s
Overall Rank = 71/249
Age Group = 55-59
Age Group Rank = 3/5
Pre-race routine:

Not much. Weather was perfect. It was a sprint tri. I was more relaxed before the race than before any other race (of any kind). However I did break my rule to make sure I got a full night's sleep 2 nights before a race, so I didn't feel well rested.
Event warmup:

I swam a couple of hundred yards before my heat. It was a short 1/2 mile so I knew I would want to go fast from the start.
Swim
  • 11m 13s
  • 879 yards
  • 01m 17s / 100 yards
Comments:

Where do I start. I am a swimmer and have swam my share of open water races, but I have never had an experience even remotely close to what happened to me in the swim. I took off with the over 40 wave. I expected to lead or be with the leader. A hundred yards out I could tell I had pulled away, but at 200 yards I was stopped abruptly by a kayaker and his paddle. He pulled right in front of me and insisted that I was off course. He blocked my way and forced me in the direction of a different colored course marker (orange instead of white). I knew this was wrong. The orange marker was or the swim short Tri-It distance. Unfortunately, there was just no getting around this guy, so I turned left to the wrong marker. I ended up coming across other swimmers catching up so I joined the pack and swam on. No sooner than I had rounded the first buoy (the correct one) and passed the people ahead of me, I realized that the next kayaker was right in the middle of the line of sight to the next buoy. I started yelling at him to no avail. So I just swam on intent on swamping him if he got in the way. Lucky for him he did not. Many people complained they could simply not see the 2nd buoy.

I managed to pass everyone in the over 40 wave so no harm suffered, but I felt bad for any of those behind me that may have run into similar problems and did not have the open water experience. As it turns out 2 woman told me he had hit them with his paddle trying to get them to make the wrong turn. I spoke to the course director, who appeared politely concerned. Clearly not a competitor, it looked like this was a minor issue since no one drowned. I guess in that sense it was.
What would you do differently?:

Knock the first kayaker out of his boat and ignore the second one.
Transition 1
  • 03m 33s
Comments:

When will I ever learn to be quicker in transition. It was only the second time I swam in a wetsuit, and did my worst getting my suit off. It all seems so simple in practice. I gave away at least 1 minute here.
What would you do differently?:

Train at this venue, race the swim, run up the hill to the transition area, take off my wetsuit, and put shoes and socks on. I'm going to do this 3 times in a row. I hope this helps.
Bike
  • 41m 23s
  • 12.5 miles
  • 18.12 mile/hr
Comments:

Train more on the bike. I love racing the bike and I go much faster with the proper training. I just got a late start on my training this year.
What would you do differently?:

Brick training: bike to run.
Transition 2
  • 02m 1s
Comments:

Missed my aisle on returning with my bike. First time for that.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster and stay focused on my location. I think I gave away as much 30 seconds here.
Run
  • 27m 29s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 08m 50s  min/mile
Comments:

I almost didn't complete the race. At the top of the first hill (at approx. 2/3 mile post) I almost stopped. I am fighting a piriformis injury and was running on one leg. However once over the top I could relax that muscle and slowly increase my speed. I always run the second half much faster
What would you do differently?:

I came up short on training. This was the primary reason I did the sprint. Get more running in.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around a bit and drank lots of water. My legs were stiff but I was not tired.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Insufficient training due to early season injury. Unresolved piriformis injury. Getting more "mature" every day.

Event comments:

Choosing the sprint distance was the right right choice. It allowed me to have more fun racing and less time surviving. I was in a tough age group (really). The other two 55 year olds that beat me in my age group finished 13th and 49th overall respectively in this field of 249.




Last updated: 2008-07-12 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:11:13 | 879 yards | 01m 17s / 100yards
Age Group: 1/5
Overall: 10/249
Performance: Good
Suit: Zoot Z1
Course: Counterclockwise triangle
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Bad
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:33
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:41:23 | 12.5 miles | 18.12 mile/hr
Age Group: 3/5
Overall: 99/249
Performance: Average
Wind: None
Course: Rolling hills around a lake.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 85
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:01
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Bad
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Below average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:27:29 | 03.11 miles | 08m 50s  min/mile
Age Group: 3/5
Overall: 131/249
Performance: Below average
Course: Hilly on a road. Out and back.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4