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Titanium Man Triathlon - TriathlonOther


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Kennewick, Washington
United States
3 Rivers Road Runners
70F / 21C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 21m 30s
Overall Rank = 41/204
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 7/17
Pre-race routine:

Ate too much the night before at Red Lobster but it was good seafood and pasta. Didn't sleep real well but not bad either. This race doesn't start until 9:00am so you don't have to get up real early which is nice. Hit transition at a little after 7:00 and got a good spot for my bike. Fiddled around doing transition prep until about 8. Transitions are kind of different for this race, as the swim is a point to point and T1 is 2 miles from T2. Also, you have to bag up your gear at T1 so they can bring it to the finish. Volunteers catch your bike and rack it for you, and you run up and grab a bag with your running gear in it and change. Just not your usual transition set-up.
Event warmup:

Not too much different than usual. Rode my bike for a couple minutes, mostly to make sure there were no glitches. Then got in the water and swam against the current for a few minutes to warm up the swim muscles.
Ate a PowerGel just before the swim start.
Swim
  • 17m 6s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 02s / 100 yards
Comments:

Even aside from this being a downstream swim, this was probably the best, most comfortable swim I've ever done in a race.
Just looking at the river, it didn't look like much current was running. But when you got in the water there was definitely a decent current. While warming up, you could swim into the current at a leisurely pace and just hold your position. They gave us a 1 minute warning until start and I got out into the deep water, faced upstream, and swam easy into the current. When the start horn went off I flipped over and headed downstream.
This was my first swim in my new Xterra Vector Pro2 wetsuit and it felt amazing compared to my old suit. The flexibility in the shoulders is fantastic. The first few minutes of the swim I spent just having a blast with my new wetsuit and feeling like a fish, gliding through the water. Got through a few people and then started pushing a little harder. Sighting was going well and I stayed on a nice straight line, about 50 yards off shore.
During most races, after about 100 yards or so, I get that breathless feeling and it takes a couple minutes to get past it. That never happened today and I felt great the whole swim. Started edging in toward the shore as I got closer to where I figured the finish was and pretty soon I could see the big Power Bar sign that marked the end of the swim. Kept moving in toward shore and pretty soon the sign was right in front of me and then I felt bottom with my finger tips. Stood up and as I was getting to ankle deep water I looked at my watch and it was 16:50 something! I just about fell over right there, looking at that time. The official swim time was longer but the timing mat was up the beach a bit. My time was only around 4 minutes slower than the fastest swimmers so I was happy with it. If this had been a lake swim with no current, 4 minutes off the best swimmers would have been around 25 or so which I will take any day.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Transition 1
  • 01m 27s
Comments:

We had to bag our wetsuits and towels so that took some extra time. Also got my ankles stuck in my wetsuit but that wasn't too bad. My T1 time was 4th in my AG and 23rd fastest overall. Practice pays off!
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Bike
  • 1h 10m 10s
  • 24.85 miles
  • 21.25 mile/hr
Comments:

As I mentioned, the first 11 or so miles were mostly uphill, with a few flats. The wind wasn't too bad until farther into the course.
Got through the hills and headwind, hit the turn around, and headed back home at a good pace. Ate another PowerGel at the turn-around. One more sustained climb then a consistent downhill/flat the rest of the way. Got to about mile 20 and started to really feel good so I pushed harder the rest of the way in. Passed quite a few people on the bike and got passed a couple times too. Got out by myself on the uphills a couple times and lost focus just a bit and slowed down. Didn't last long though, and I got going faster when someone would try to pass. Ate one more PowerGel just before coming into T2.
What would you do differently?:

Not much, except not lose focus on the uphills and keep pushing.
Transition 2
  • 00m 46s
Comments:

Came into T2 with my feet out, jumped off the bike and a volunteer grabbed it from me so I could just keep running right up the steps into the transition area. A volunteer had my bag with my shoes and hat waiting for me, I found a chair and put on my shoes and then took off. 4th AG and 18th OA T2.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Run
  • 52m
  • 6.21 miles
  • 08m 22s  min/mile
Comments:

Felt pretty decent the first couple miles and hit the 2 mile mark at an 8:10 pace. I had passed the woman's OA AG winner at about mile 22 of the bike but she caught me about 3/4 mile into the run. She's a friend of mine and a pretty fast runner. I'd told her when I passed her that she would catch me on the run and it didn't take long! I didn't wear socks again today but had fixed the problem of my insoles bunching up. Didn't help though, as my left arch began to blister about 2 1/2 miles in.
Somewhere around the 3 mile mark, my race number belt fell off and I didn't notice it for a bit. Lost probably 30-40 seconds going back to pick it up. Around mile 4, a couple guys in my AG passed me and I tried to pick it up and stay close but no luck. My legs didn't have it in them today. At about one mile to go, Sister Madonna Buder ran by on her way out on the run, just smiling and having a blast. She's 78 years young and had done IMC 6 days earlier and here she was racing again today! Unbelievable! Finished up on the uphill for a pretty average run. Didn't feel it to run much harder today.
What would you do differently?:

More running fitness. That is going to be my goal in the off season. Base miles are pretty good but I need more speed work. That, and I guess I'm going to have to start wearing socks. Two races in a row with bad blisters. Ugh.
Post race
Warm down:

Got a drink, picked up my gear and bike, changed clothes, and hung around for awards. 4 out of the 5 of us from my tri club placed, with a second OA, a first AG, and two seconds AG. Of course I was the only one who didn't place but then there weren't any Clydesdales today either so I was competing against the little skinny guys!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Better running fitness.

Event comments:

Very fun race, well organized, good volunteers. The downstream swim is a hoot and the bike course is a good challenge. I enjoyed it a lot and will plan on doing it again.




Last updated: 2008-08-31 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:17:06 | 1640 yards | 01m 02s / 100yards
Age Group: 8/17
Overall: 58/204
Performance: Good
Suit: Xterra Vector Pro 2
Course: Straight, point to point.
Start type: Deep Water Plus: Shot
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding:
T1
Time: 01:27
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:10:10 | 24.85 miles | 21.25 mile/hr
Age Group: 3/17
Overall: 23/204
Performance: Good
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: This is a pretty deceptively difficult course. Not as hard as the CDA Oly course but definitely a lot of hills. The first 11 miles are generally an uphill trend, with a couple good climbs.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 00:46
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:52:00 | 06.21 miles | 08m 22s  min/mile
Age Group: 11/17
Overall: 88/204
Performance: Average
Course: Flat, with about a 1/4 mile uphill to the finish. Quite a bit of shade too which was nice.
Keeping cool Average Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2008-08-31 7:56 AM

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Expert
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Coeur D'alene, ID
Subject: Titanium Man Triathlon


2008-08-31 3:56 PM
in reply to: #1640101

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Master
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Plant City, FL
Subject: RE: Titanium Man Triathlon
CONGRATS ROCKSTAR!! Way to kick butt and take names!!
2008-09-01 9:21 AM
in reply to: #1640101

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Expert
783
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Spokane, Washington
Subject: RE: Titanium Man Triathlon

Nice work out there!  That IS a fun race - I wish I could've been there too.  Great swim and bike splits, and someday I hope to get to the speed you have when you're not feelin' it!  Cool

2008-09-03 5:25 PM
in reply to: #1640101

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Regular
58
2525
Subject: RE: Titanium Man Triathlon
Congrats on a great race!
2008-09-05 10:04 AM
in reply to: #1640101

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Champion
6931
5000100050010010010010025
Bellingham, Washington
Subject: RE: Titanium Man Triathlon

Good race Stan, I had a co-worker that went out there and did the event.   You beat him by a couple minutes..

It's the new Pre Race Meal.  Red Lobster... 

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