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Kinetic Sprint, Race #4 - TriathlonSprint


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Spotsylvania, Virginia
United States
Set-Up, Inc
63F / 17C
Precipitation
Total Time = 2h 15m 31s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 30-34F
Age Group Rank = 37/46
Pre-race routine:

Up at 6:45am, bagel/OJ/water from hotel. 16 oz gatorade on way to race. 1 gel 15 min before start. Fun trying to set up transition so my stuff would stay dry.
Event warmup:

Wetsuit struggle/warmup 20 min before pre-race meeting. Quick 50 yds in water to get used to temp and work on sighting in those conditions. Stretch and chat with other age groupers.

Swim
  • 24m 8s
  • 820 yards
  • 02m 56s / 100 yards
Comments:

I was scared to death..at first. I'm terrified of the water. Glad I did a short warm up to get used to the water conditions. Things started out and I fought to stay calm. I usually psych myself out in the first 100 yards and have a very difficult time finishing. I focused on exhaling under water, lengthening my stroke, and relaxing. I had to breathe every other stroke because of the cold and elevated HR in the open water. I would sight every third breath. I stayed on track, paused a few times to get myself under control, and just kept at it. I kept telling myself that if I just focused on my pattern, I would be at my destination before I knew it. Bummer part was, I forgot to start my watch at the horn. I remembered 1/2 way through the swim. The second half was better than the first. I was really surprised to find that the second half or so only took me about 10 minutes. It sure felt like longer. I came out of the water relaxed and happy. It was a nice change.
My thought for the day was "I'm so proud of myself for that swim!"

What would you do differently?:

Keep working on race day breathing pattern in the pool and sighting drills. It really helped to know what to expect of myself when I'd reach open water. Still need to learn to relax more and not freak out, then I'll worry about getting faster. I'm happy with my progress. I'm still slow, but I've made HUGE strides from not knowing how to swim and being terrified of the water.
Transition 1
  • 03m 13s
Comments:

T1 was longer than I would have liked. Couldn't get wetsuit off my feet! I couldn't stand and not slip in mud long enough to take off the suit and put my shoes on. Had to use road shoes since my tri shoes haven't been set up yet. Shoes gave me issues and I had to redo the left one. Running with cleats in mud was NOT easy. I had to stop to walk a few times out of T1 so I wouldn't fall.
Looked like I did better than I thought in T1...even with mud and road shoes. 8th!

What would you do differently?:

Given the conditions, not much.
Bike
  • 1h 05m 7s
  • 18 miles
  • 16.59 mile/hr
Comments:

Had issues clipping in with all the mud. Took first 10-15 min of bike easy. Focused on spinning and lower gears to get my legs going. There were more climbs than I've been used to, so it was fun to use gears I haven't used much. I could have made better gearing choices a few times, but mostly things were good. Fun course. Finally got my legs about halfway in. Not soon enough. Some day I'll be worthy of the bike. Got a few "odd" looks from others passing me early on. I'm still learning my ride.

What would you do differently?:

Practice hills and spinning more. I'm really disappointed with this bike considering how well my training rides have been.
Not drink so much given the conditions. I paid for it during the run.
And practice lots with my new shoes/cleats. The shoes I used have had the cleats on/off/changed at least 6 times in the past 3 weeks.

Transition 2
  • 02m 59s
Comments:

The rain really showed here. There was a river near my transition area. I had to sit down again to wipe some of the mud off my shoes.
And I really, really, really had to... you know, GO!

What would you do differently?:

Again, considering the conditions, nothing. 34/46 AG
Run
  • 40m 6s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 12m 53s  min/mile
Comments:

Terrible. My most disappointing 5k in a long while. I've really backed off my running because of my knees. Been focusing more on swim and bike. Felt winded at first. The uphill was a little rough coming off the bike. Knees started to feel swollen and hurt. It just wasn't worth pushing the run to ruin my knees this close to my race. Walked a lot. Bladder hurt the whole way as I really had to go!
What would you do differently?:

Work on bike/run brick more. Heal my knees.
Post race
Warm down:

Stretch. To med tent immediately to ice knees.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Patellar tendinitis and other knee issues.

Event comments:

Awards ceremony cancelled due to risk of hypothermia for athletes. Free pasta, rolls and salad for athletes. I usually can't eat the other stuff that is at these events because my stomach can't handle it. This was easier.
All in all, I had a GREAT time! I'd like to do this race again.
I really felt for the volunteers though. At least we were out there warmed up. They were cold, soaked, and freezing! I always try to say thank you when I pass.





Last updated: 2008-04-21 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:24:08 | 820 yards | 02m 56s / 100yards
Age Group: 41/46
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Suit: XTerra Vortex Sleeveless
Course: Triangle. Sighting on right. 2 yellow turn buoys.
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:13
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
01:05:07 | 18 miles | 16.59 mile/hr
Age Group: 29/46
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Wind: Little
Course: Rolling. Last third downhill.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Below average
Gear changes: Below average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Too much
T2
Time: 02:59
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:40:06 | 03.11 miles | 12m 53s  min/mile
Age Group: 44/46
Overall: 0/
Performance: Bad
Course: Uphill, flattened out, down hill to turn around, then gradual small back up for a bit. Last .2 or so was downhill though the woods on a paved trail. Pretty. A river though.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2008-04-21 8:00 AM

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Member
28
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Newport News, VA
Subject: Kinetic Sprint, Race #4


2008-04-22 12:12 PM
in reply to: #1350795

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Pro
4343
2000200010010010025
Olney, MD
Subject: RE: Kinetic Sprint, Race #4
Tough conditions. Great effort!
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