Ann Arbor Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Pinckney, Michigan
United States
eliteendeavors.com
Overcast
Total Time = 2h 27m 23s
Overall Rank = 345/368
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 48/50
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 5:00, ate some cereal, re-checked bag, racked bike, and forgot bike computer. Found Cheryl and Eric almost immediately, and kinda tagged along with them (hope they didn't mind too much) :)

The transition area was being policed pretty strictly. I heard an official talking about the penalties for having your bike racked the wrong way, or if your gear was outside your area. I adjusted my stuff to ensure I didn't get any penalties for my T's.

Even though I was a seasoned veteran by this time (haha), I still found myself pretty nervous before the race.

I stumbled across the Andreas :) and introduced myself. They were volunteering on the bike section and promised to cheer for me! Hooray!
Event warmup:

Got into the water about 10 minutes before the start, swam for a minute or two. Was still in the water when they did national anthem. Wandered over to the "Start Side" about a minute before the start.
Swim
  • 16m 44s
  • 880 yards
  • 01m 54s / 100 yards
Comments:

Stayed to the outside, almost too much, perhaps. My cap came off in the first 100 or so, so I had to stop and cram it back on my peanut-shaped head. I tried having my goggles on UNDER my cap, hoping the cap would keep goggles from getting kicked off, or whatever, but maybe my goggles help keep my cap ON. Perhaps I'll keep my cap under the goggles until I have a problem with goggles falling off.

I keep wondering how much improvement a wetsuit would give me. Currently, it is NOT the top of my wish-shopping list.

ALSO... my calves felt a little crampy running up the hill to T1!!! I don't usually kick much when swimming, so I was fairly alarmed that they would seem this tired before doing anything.

I was still happy with the swim
What would you do differently?:

Goggles OVER cap!

Transition 1
  • 04m 8s
Comments:

I had some walking up the hill to T1 (see above note).
Stupid calves!!
Other than that, I thought I did OK. Feet were filthy and I tried to quickly scrape them off before putting socks and shoes on.
The sand and gunk that remained on my feet did not bother me for either the bike or run, so it was either time well spent, or time wasted, depending on how you look at it. I'm voting for well spent. :)

Grabbed gel, glasses and "ran" it out.
What would you do differently?:

Still need more transition practice, but this was a lot better then Hawk-I
Bike
  • 1h 01m 33s
  • 14 miles
  • 13.65 mile/hr
Comments:

Definitely my weak event
I need to log a TON more miles on my bike. More hills, more speed, more all-around-awesomeness.
A better-suited bike wouldn't hurt, either. The roads were bumpy and rough, so maybe my bike (hybrid) was a good "choice", but I still need to work a lot more on it.

I must say that when I got to the "2xAndrea" corner and heard them cheering for me, it made me smile and made the biking a little easier for a while (thanks to the Andreas) :)
What would you do differently?:

More bike training
Transition 2
  • 01m 30s
Comments:

Fairly fast T2. Already had running shoes on. Forgot and went back for hat... probably cost me about 5-10 sec.
Didn't bring gel.
What would you do differently?:

Don't forget hat.
Maybe bring a gel for a run of this length
Be fast AND look good. (haha.. .unlikely)
Run
  • 1h 03m 30s
  • 5 miles
  • 12m 42s  min/mile
Comments:

The hills in the first mile stink! I was still trying to get my "running" legs by the time I got there. Ended up walking at the steepest parts.

I don't particularly like the black meshy stuff that they used to keep the erosion down. It seemed very bumpy and slippery at the same time... I thought it seemed easier to turn an ankle on that stuff. I tried to avoid it whenever possible.

Almost bit it with a mile or two to go, but caught myself. I'm pretty sure I was the only witness. :) Didn't notice anything right away, but my quad seemed a little strained coming up the road (the last hill). I stopped and stretched it out for a second.

I was able to finish fairly strong, at least.

What would you do differently?:

Weigh less, awesome more
Post race
Warm down:

none
ate and chatted
cheered on the folks that didn't get a chance to pass me

Hung with BT-ers and Greyhounds at GH tent.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

not enough training on bike
run still improving

Event comments:

Hard race. Fun race.
I could DO it, just not as fast as most others.
I can improve on my training and lose weight and see how much faster I can get in a year.




Last updated: 2009-02-19 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:16:44 | 880 yards | 01m 54s / 100yards
Age Group: 22/50
Overall: 162/368
Performance: Good
Suit: tri shorts and tri tank
Course: single rectangle, clockwise
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 69F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 04:08
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
01:01:33 | 14 miles | 13.65 mile/hr
Age Group: 49/50
Overall: 353/368
Performance: Below average
Wind: None
Course: lots of hilly, bumpy, gravelly, and rough.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:30
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:03:30 | 05 miles | 12m 42s  min/mile
Age Group: 49/50
Overall: 348/368
Performance: Average
Course: Challenging trail. Thankfully, they removed the downed tree in the first half mile of the course. The first big hill(s) still stink. Temp was nice and cool, didn't notice too many bugs. Great trail.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4