chrisbowers group "Now We're Rolling!" - Full (Page 11)

Hope everyone had a good weekend!  I did a 5K yesterday, which was a lot of fun.  Good training for my upcoming tri...  It was a nice course but very hot in the sun.  I came in the top 33% total and in my age group, which I was psyched about.  There were over 4,000 runners (all women); it was the largest road race I've ever done.  I had a really good time, so I'll probably do it again next year!

Here's the link to my race report if interested:

http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=255000

They canceled Breezy Point Sprint.  The thunder storms started  about 30 min before the schedule start continued  most of the day.  Understand that this was going to be the last  race  at Breezy Point no rain date. At least my bike got washed. Guess I start again for my next race  in North Carolina 10 July.

Sorry to hear that!  That must have been disappointing...  At least you have another one lined up so soon!

Yesterday's race was quite a rollercoaster for me, the OWS was a disaster.  I recently got a wetsuit and with our cold spring had only been in the water for a few minutes the week before the race.   It seemed super tight around the neck, but I have read that is to be expected.  The water temp was ok- 61'. Lesson learned - a wet suit can be too tight.  I could not breathe correctly and ended up taking forever to exit the water. I didn't panic but I was very frustrated.

I was pretty discouraged when I got on my bike (although it was easy to find!) but decided I would try to make up some time and at least know I had tried hard. I made up some time and by the middle of the run was in the middle of the BOP.  I passed a woman in my age group about .25 from the finish and she and I ended up sprinting all out for the finish.  It was very fun and I would not have pushed that hard with out her.  I crossed about 1 second in front of her and ended up coming in 2nd for my age group.  I'm going to take my suit into the local shop tomorrow and see if they have any ideas.

I am very glad I had this event before my Oly so I have time to work on some things. My next sprint is in 2 weeks so I have time to practice again in a wetsuit!

Carol

Congrats on finishing your race, Carol!  And 2nd place in your age group is awesome!! Even with the challenges of your OWS and wetsuit!  You must have totally crushed the bike leg!  

Hope your shop can help sort out your wetsuit issues, although I keep hearing that feeling contricted/your wetsuit is too tight is a common sensation when doing your first OWS. 

That is so cool that you went head to head with that woman at the end - so motivating!!  Nice job!!

Thanks for the support! 

Everything I can find says my wetsuit is the right size so I decided to swim in our lake last night to try my wetsuit out in non race conditions.  A couple of things I did helped - I took my time getting the suit on - really focusing on bringing all the material up to the chest area little by little, including arm fabric. I also rotated my shoulders back while it was zipped up to keep my chest in an open position.  Then I applied LOTS of body glide around my neck. 

It seemed to help quite a bit, I talked to the shop and they recommended I try it a few more times before bringing it back. The swim went OK - still constrictive but not so bad, I'm swimming tomorrow too before giving up on it.  I have my fingers crossed - now if I can just get use to swimming with a crowd! Any ideas?

There are some open water swim clinics offered around here (Boston area) that are put on by some of the race organizers before their tris.  They're aimed at beginners and help you get used to entering the water/swimming with a group, sighting, getting more comfortable swimming in open water and how to get out of water most efficiently...  Have you checked out your race websites to see if they offer anything similar??  Or maybe even post the question to your state/area's forum on BT to see what other people recommend locally?

We still here? 

Thinking of trying a 20 mile bike race  when I up in two week, it's a bit longer than the bike portion of the sprint I'm doing in July,  but the terrain looks similiar (about 450ft  of elevation change for both) .  Any opinions?

Hey Adam - I know you posted this awhile ago, but I just came across the following forum on BT that might help answer your question. 

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=256655&posts=12&start=1

Are you still getting those cramps??  HTH!

-Kristen

No racing for me yet - still in training! I've got a question though: I've been reading up on fitness etc and keep reading about building a fitness base so that I can perform at a given intensity for a particular period of time, and then introducing intervals of higher intensity to allow me to speed up.

My question is, should this be over the individual times, or the overall race? For example, I can run for 30 mins at my standard running pace quite happily. Do I now work on intervals during that 30 mins in order to allow me to run at a greater pace for that period of time in isolation? This seems to be what people seem to do, but in a race I'll be doing the 30 mins of running, but having already done perhaps 10 mins of swimming and 45 mins of cycling. Am I therefore better concentrating on my ability to exercise for the entire 2 hours or so?

I guess what I am basically asking is "do you train mainly for each discipline individually, or train for the race as a whole?"

I've been using the BT Beginner Training Program and they have me training for the disciplines individually but training for longer periods of time than I'll actually be spending during the race.  For example, I hope to complete the 5K run in under 30 minutes on race day, but there are days that the BT schedule has me running for 50 minutes.  They do not have me training for any discipline for the time I expect to complete the entire race (2 hours). 

And then 1-2 weeks pre-race, they suggest a couple of brick sessions, i.e. combined swim then bike or combined bike then run, but not for the entire time/distance of race.  So last weekend I rode the 12 mile bike course of the race and ran 1 mile immediately following but did not run the entire 5K race course.  So, I don't think you need to train for the "race as a whole" but you should train over the times you expect for each discipline and then do some bricks.

Congrats on completing your 2nd race!  I enjoyed reading your report - good tips on inflating tires pre-race and nutrition!  I'll keep that in mind this coming weekend - I have my first tri on Sunday... 

Sorry I haven't been around lately, summer has hit!

Saturday I completed a sprint tri in my home town and the good news is the OWS went great.  No panic breathing.  I was somewhat nervous but managed to calm myself down and focus on my strokes.  It was a fun event (part of founders day celebration).  It poured down rain the entire time and turn out was very low but all in all good fun.  Heading into high intensity now to get ready for my first Oly at the end of July. Whooo!

Glad your OWS went better last weekend!    That's so awesome that you're doing an OLY this summer.  That is my goal for next season!!  Good luck with the training...  Keep us posted.

Good luck this weekend!  I'll be racing on Sunday, too.  I'm actually kind of nervous - this is the race that I've been gearing up for since the end of January, so I feel the need to really nail it!  It's a local tri, so I'll have a lot of friends racing - but I've got a really late start wave, so I don't expect to see anyone out on the course.  I'm taking it pretty easy this week to make sure I'm well rested & I'll just hope for good energy that day.  Finishing strong is really my main goal but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have some very specific (and challenging) time targets as well... 

can I put in a request now for a slightly cooler, overcast day with an uncharacteristic breeze? 

Hey, David -  each race is a chance to learn something & get better!  Keep at it!  As far as bike tire pressure goes, I'd recommend getting in the habit of pumping your tires up before every ride - training ride or race.  A decent bike pump was my first purchase once I started riding again.  I was amazed to see how much pressure the tires lose from ride to ride - and what a better ride I had on properly inflated tires.  Also, you don't necessarily want to top off your tires the night before.  For the local tri's around here you have to rack your bike the night before.  On the morning of the race, as the day starts to warm up, it's common to hear tires burst that had been filled up the night before...

Thanks, Ally!  Best of luck to you, as well!!  Hope your weather wishes come true

Seem a bit out of it with  no race forme  until next month.  Good luck  to all of you who are racing  this weekend.  I'm on my way  up to Lancaster, PA with wife.  She has a conference to attend, I'm taking my bike and hope to get some ridding in  if  there is  no rain if not I guss  just  some running.

Our masters swim coach who is also a triathlete recommends baby powder in bike shoes to absorb any water left over from swim.  She also puts vaseline around the ankle area on her running shoes b/c she doesn't wear socks for the run when she does a sprint distance (wears socks only for longer distances).  I can't remember if she puts vaseline in her cycling shoes too where you might have rubbing/chafing??

I'm wearing socks and running shoes for both bike and run...

Hi Friends - Is our mentor group still "rolling"??

Just completed my first sprint tri yesterday - The Cohasset Triathlon (in MA).  It was a great experience, lots of fun! I posted a RR if anyone's interested in reading it.

Hope everyone had a good weekend!