Pinehurst Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic

The swim started off into the sun and fog. I had a really hard time sighting the first half of the course, and because of that, I swam a bunch extra.
My stroke felt good the entire time, and if I swam the entire course like I did the last half, I probably would have been 3 minutes faster.
I was able to stay out of much of the crowding except right at the start, and when I passed the laggers of the waves ahead of me.
I never saw the second triangular bouy, but that didn't bother me. Overall, it was my best overall OWS performance. My wetsuit is now an asset rather than a fear.
When I got out of the water, I almost fell over several times trodding toward the transition.

I need more swim time and more open water swim time. I am definitely a good 15 seconds/100 yds faster than I swim in races. I need to get so I can race my strength, instead of just get through it.
My swim fitness holds me up on the start of my bike until my heart rate goes down enough to start hammering the bike course.

My transitions are typically slow. First, I am tired from getting from the swim to the transition area. second, I want to make sure I cover everything. Third, I am not in good enough swim shape to run to T1, and fourth, I never have practiced transitions.

Practice Transitions!

The bike leg was a challenge. I never saw the course, so I had no idea what to expect. It was harder than I had anticipated.
I tend to start out the bike slowly due to having a higher than desired HR out of T1. today was no exception, and was enhanced by a long hill right out of T1. My first mile was a lowly 13.9 MPH.
About 1 1/2 miles into the course, there was a sharp turn (> 90 degrees), which I misjudged and went fl;ying off the road and into the sand, almost wiping out. I was able to unclip my left leg and stop from a complete yard sale at the turn.
After that, I settled into a pretty good tempo, working up the hills and recovering on the downhills to keep my heart rate under control.
I was passed by many and I passed just as many. There were several riders who I played leapfrog with throughout the ride. There was one guy from my wave who was maybe 165 (vs. my 207) I passed him on all the uphills, then he would pass me on the downhills. I did shed him finally at about mile 16.
I wasn't able to stay in aero alot due to the constant hills ( I have a road bike with clip on aero bars, so I can't shift in aero), but for the second half of the race, I started climbing the long gradual hills in aero and that helped me keep a faster pace. (Lesson Learned)
The bike wasn't as fast as I wished for, but it was faster than my normal riding pace on that terrain, so I am pleased with the performance.

I have been riding alot on the trainer, which will help me on a flat course, like B2B, for which I am training.
It didn't help me on a hilly course.

This transition felt faster than it was. But again, I haven't practiced, so I shouldn't expect miracles

Practice Transitions!

I started out for the first half mile at an 8:30 pace, and when I noticed that, I slowed down a bit, knowing I would die on the course if I kept it up.
The run was about what I expected, but hillier. I walked through all the water stops, as planned, but had to walk a few more times on the hills.
My goal was to break 1 hour on the run, but I missed that by 53 seconds.
I passed several runners, was passed by more, and again, stayed in the same group as many runners, which tells me I am improving. Usually, I am passed by everyone who is in the vicinity of me after the bike.
I do know that I really need to improve my running pace for these races if I want to get to the front of the middle of the pack.

I would like to be able to run any course without any walking other than the drink stops. this means to train more and HTFU when I get tired.

I walked around, got fluids and some food. I put on my BT shirt in hoes of finding more BT'ers, and ran into Running_in_NC, and Keyone. I ran into EllasDad and FGump pre-race. I still have never run into Spot post race, so I am not sure he actually goes to the races. I also ran into several NC State kids that I know.


I was barely properly trained for this race, and the courtse was much harder than I anticipated.

So my final synopsis is that I need to HTFU and learn to race at a level of pain and intensity that I have not been ready to venture into as of yet.


The race itself, with the organization and venue probably is my favorite of the NCTS series.

It is interesting that as I was finishing the bike, the winners were finishing the run. Partly because they started 18 minutes ahead of me and partly because they are way faster than me.
Then when I was finishing the run, The last of the bikers were coming into transition area, which kind of felt like the whole circle of life took place at the race.