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Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon - Triathlon


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Doylestown, Pennsylvania
United States
Noell Maerz WTC Foundation
77F / 25C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 27m 25s
Overall Rank = 1/117
Age Group = M/M
Age Group Rank = 1/45
Pre-race routine:

this is a strange/fun race that is set up as a team event. it consists of a 3/4 mile run, ~1.5 mile canoe, 13 mi. bike, and 5k run. tim (konichiwa and i have been eyeing up this race for 3 years, but haven't been able to make it until now. it is local to tim and it looked like it would be a lot of fun to race as a team and be able to draft on the bike.

the race prep started on friday when we borrowed some canoes from my sister's school and tried it out for the first time ever. i went with my nephew first and got some tips from him and then tim arrived and we practiced a little. it's not rocket science to get around a calm lake, but racing in a straight line would be a little different. at least we had an idea of what we were doing now.

i woke up at tim's and had 2 pieces of toast. we loaded the bikes and headed out pretty early so that we could pick up our packet and warm up with a loop of the bike course. we hadn't seen the course and didn't know how well marked it would be. it was hillier than expected with 2 substantial climbs on each loop and had a long windy stretch on a thin trail that was difficult to go fast or pass on.
Event warmup:

we finished racking our bikes, met up with my sister the jockstrapper/superfan and stretched a little at the pre race meeting. i ate a gu and the final warm up was a 3/4 mile walk to the starting line.


Swim
  • 21m 52s
  • 2400 meters
  • 55s / 100 meters
Comments:

we started the run pretty hard hoping to beat the congestion to the canoes. i didn't need to be first, but wanted to be near the front. we ended up getting into the water 5th overall. we had no problems putting on our vests or grabbing the paddles and the awesome volunteers were launching you into the lake. it felt like they just opened the gates at disney and we went straight to the flume ride.
it was a smooth start and we were a little off course to the first buouy, but the turn was great and we had a nice second leg. people were passing us, but i wasn't too worried and we made a nice turn at the second buouy as well. the third leg was a bit dicey. we were going off course and my steering was pretty sad as i was trying not to rudder too much to avoid slowing us down. i had to do it towards the end though and we made it back to shore.
What would you do differently?:

learn better steering techniques and get more paddle experience.
Transition 1
  • 00m
Comments:

i had a hard time getting my vest off at first and my sisters told us there were 20 teams out of the water ahead of us. we had a good t1 though and made up some ground as we are listed at 13th OA starting the bike.
What would you do differently?:

nothing.
Bike
  • 42m 31s
  • 13 miles
  • 18.34 mile/hr
Comments:

we started the bike eager to make up ground and see what we could do. a 2 person team time trial was the most appealing part of the race. we went out pretty hard and underestimated the course a little. tim is a stronger cyclist than me and it takes me some time to warm up on the bike. when we hit the first hill, we did a good job of busting up it, but it took it's toll. i had to ease off a bit and we had a hard time getting our pace in sync early. we got stuck behind some teams on the first time through the thin section and although it allowed a little recovery, it was costing us some time. we did a better job on the second hill though and made some nice efforts on the downhill finish of the first loop.
at this point we had no idea where the leaders were, but my sister called out that we were :53 seconds behind. that was good news and gave us a boost to keep pushing for the second loop. we alternated :30 pulls until we hit the first climb again. there were plenty of teams walking the hill on their first loop and we tried to yell some encouragement. it was great to see people out there pushing themselves in what may have been their first race ever. that hill must have been a bit of a surprise but they were all very determined and looked good.
we rode the climb steady this time and caught a few teams just after. tim came to the front and they jumped on my wheel as we passed. i gestured for them to pass us, but they just sat there. didn't they know that tim was there to pull my a$$ around the course, not their's?!?! i started to get a little frustrated and just started yelling to tim "go! go! go! go!". he slowed at first, but finally realized what was going on and dropped the hammer. i hung on and we were alone in seconds. tim eased a little, but didn't pull off. he recovered and then saw an opportunity for a few more passes before the trail. i agreed and he put in a monster pull that we realized later put us in the front of the race. it was unavoidable and much safer, so we ended up easing up as a pack through the trail section actually calling out walkers, turns, dogs, etc. like we were on a slow group ride.
with about 100 feet left of the trail and a sharp turn at the end, the teams behind us must have seen a green flag. they squeezed by us and took off. we played leapfrog a little, but went steady until the top of the second climb where we were able to make another solid effort back to the transition area in first place. or should i say the dismount area, as the team behind us RODE into the transition area next to us and technically made it to their rack first.
obviously there were some stronger cyclists out there, as they were busting up hills by us. unfortunately they were leaving their teammates behind and wasting energy showing us how great they were. it was good to see that sticking together payed off in the end.

What would you do differently?:

not much. my cycling has been lacking lately. we also could have been steadier in our efforts early.
Transition 2
  • 00m
Comments:

i almost forgot to take off my helmet, but other than that, we had a great t2 and took off while the 2nd place team tied their shoes.

What would you do differently?:

nothing.
Run
  • 23m 2s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 07m 25s  min/mile
Comments:

great solid run. we went out pretty hard and then just kept a solid pace. it got pretty hot so we tried to stay cool and finish strong. we were able to see all the teams on the way back so the pressure was off. we cruised back into the finish area with a decent crowd and my sister going crazy.
very cool. first ever and maybe last overall win (unless team XY pulls off some relay wins next year). even though it's a small wacky race, tim and i have had our sights on this race for a while so to win it together is kind of special
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Post race
Warm down:

bought some lemonade at the kid's fund raising stand and camped out on the finish line to cheer for everyone finishing.
waited for the awards ceremony and got a plaque, big trophy, and will get our names engraved on the big event trophy.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

tim not wearing his aero helmet on the canoe.

Event comments:

great venue. great cause. great course. website, race details, course details etc. are pretty poor, but i would still recommend it.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-08-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:21:52 | 2400 meters | 55s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/45
Overall: 13/117
Performance: Bad
Suit:
Course: 3/4 mile run to the canoes + 1.5 mile clockwise triangle
Start type: Run Plus:
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 00:00
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:42:31 | 13 miles | 18.34 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/45
Overall: 1/117
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: 2 loops (much of it freshly paved) with 2 climbs each and 1 section of a thin paved trail.
Road: Smooth  Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Below average
Race pace: Too hard Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 00:00
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:23:02 | 03.11 miles | 07m 25s  min/mile
Age Group: 1/45
Overall: 1/117
Performance: Good
Course: out and back along lake. short inclines, but relatively flat.
Keeping cool Average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2007-09-10 10:57 AM

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Extreme Veteran
471
1001001001002525
Northern Virginia
Subject: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon


2007-09-10 1:50 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Extreme Veteran
488
100100100100252525
Southeast, PA
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon
it was nice to race with you instead of looking over my shoulder the whole race. Nice job out there piloting the canoe, working on the bike, pacing the run, etc. btw, i'll consider anything, including aero helmets, to help the canoe...my back is still a little sore today from all the rowing!
2007-09-10 5:06 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Niskayuna, NY
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon
Great job to both you and Timmy!  Sounds like a fun/wacky race and it's great to read about the competitiveness.  Better learn the "J" stroke for next year when you guys defend so that you can steer better!
2007-09-10 7:16 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Extreme Veteran
402
100100100100
CT
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon
sounds like an awesome time, my team xy will have to come out and race some time
2007-09-11 12:46 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Regular
61
2525
West Hartford
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon
No swimming? What kind of BS race is this...i'm out. Just kidding, nicely done. Would love to have seen the two on you in draft mode on the bike, must have been quite the effort. Congrats on the victory!
2007-09-11 7:47 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Veteran
236
10010025
Reston
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon
Nice work, guys!! I wish I could have been there!
It's great to se you guys work together so well to kick some !
I agree..it would have added a different aspect to see Tim with the aero helmet in the canoe.

Awesome, awesome job!!


2007-09-12 8:18 PM
in reply to: #958026

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Expert
1205
1000100100
Herndon VA
Subject: RE: Noell Maerz Patriot Games Triathlon

Hey Brad,

Congrats on the hardware!  It sounded like a fun race.

Ernie

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