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Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic
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Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic - TriathlonOlympic
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 Swim
Comments: Wetsuits are so nice. After doing the practice swim the day before without a wetsuit, I was immediately reminded of and appreciated the difference when I hit the water for the race. The wetsuit made for a relaxed, easy, smooth swim. My goal was to keep things as smooth and easy as possible. I had never done a 1500M OWS before, and I was determined to not lose my breath, get winded, or over-exert myself. In retrospect, I did that well but ended up with some gas left in the tank at the end of the swim and wished I had pushed slightly harder. A 27-minute swim is definitely achievable. Sighting was a major PIA on the way back in. We were swimming DIRECTLY into the sun. Couldn't see a damn thing...not the buoys, not any landmarks, nothing. Other than the swimmers nearby. So all I could do was sight off of them and hope they're heading in the right direction! Eventually, I figured out that the swim exit was literally in a direct line with the sun. And I could see the sun out of the top of my goggles without really even lifting my head out of the water. Never sighted off of the sun like that before, but it worked fairly well, with an occasional pop-up of the head to look around make sure I wasn't straying off course. And I learned that I cannot pee while swimming. No matter how relaxed I tried to convince myself I was (even bored at times), it wasn't happening. Guess I'll try on the bike. What would you do differently?: I can push this one harder. I was intentionally conservative with this being my first 1500M open water swim. I need to also focus on extending my stroke more in open water...my stroke is short and choppy compared to pool workouts/swims.  Transition 1
Comments: This was decent. It was a long run from the swim exit to my bike rack. And the rough asphalt was pretty nasty, so it was a fairly gingerly jog through transition. Also, point-to-point race meant everyone had to make sure wetsuit and everything else was packed up into bag and zipped up. What would you do differently?: Jog a little faster coming out of the water.  Bike
Comments: The first 1/3 of the bike course was a bitch. It was predominately uphill with a few bruiser climbs, which made it impossible to get the heart rate down. After that, it got pretty fast with the downhill slope and southerly tail wind. I'd guess that I averaged around 12 mph for the first 1/3, and then north of 25 for the last 2/3. There were a few rough spots. And one patch on Westmoreland was terrible...big slope downhill and just crappy, rough pavement. Going 35mph while getting bounced around with both wheels off the ground can be a little unsettling. At the bottom of the hill, there were about 8-10 firemen/paramedics watching, probably from a nearby fire station, but I thought they were well-positioned for some possible carnage. And no initiation into the yellow socks brigade. Sadly enough, I was consciously TRYING to urinate on the bike and couldn't do it. Even with a bladder that felt like it was going to burst. Guess my body was too busy focusing on other stuff. What would you do differently?: Save a little of the legs for the run. I was happy with the 20+ average, but I didn't have anything left for the run. Transition 2
Comments: Everything was good, but for the fact that I spent a good solid minute in the port-a-let getting rid of the liquids I had been trying to purge for the last two hours. Ugh. Could've spent two minutes, but I shut the valves and plumbing off. Good enough to get me through the run. Best dismount I've had to date. Came out of the shoes nicely, and blazed right up to the dismount line. Perhaps a little too fast...made one of the volunteers really nervous that I didn't see the dismount line and he began jumping around and yelling at me as I approached. I was thinking to myself, "It's all good, brutha!" Also got a "wow" out of one of the spectators (love that). Any faster and I would have face planted upon my feet hitting the ground. Also saw one guy totally biff right in front of me (and the hundred or so people gathered near the dismount line). Just looked like he couldn't get a foot out and laid it down pretty hard and rolled the bike over himself. He jumped up pretty quickly though, so I guess all was good. What would you do differently?: Not have to hit the john (or learn to pee while swimming or riding the bike!).  Run
Comments: Ouch. It's never fun for the first mile after getting off the bike, but my legs will usually loosen up. Not so for this race. They were as tight as guitar strings for the entire 6+ miles. You name it, it was tight...calves, quads, hammys, ankles. Then my back muscles decided to join the party too. Ouch. It was all I could do to get through the dang race. I was hoping for something around 8-8:30/mile pace, but ended up close to 9:00. And this was definitely my weakest leg of the three compared to the field. I need to get some foot problems treated, and then spend the majority of this off-season focusing on the run. What would you do differently?: Save some energy during the bike. Log more miles pounding the pavement. Post race
Warm down: Nice selection of food and drinks just past the finish line. Oranges, bagels, bananas, cookies, etc. And the always welcome cold towel. Fun event afterwards...live music, booths, award ceremony, massage tent...all in Victory Plaza. What limited your ability to perform faster: Lack of run training due to foot issues. Event comments: Excellent event. Profile Album Last updated: 2008-10-06 12:00 AM
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 2008-10-06 2:13 PM |
Veteran  218  Plano, Texas |  Subject: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic |
| 2008-10-06 5:59 PM in reply to: #1721359 |
Regular 57 Plano, Texas | Subject: RE: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic Day-um, bro. Great bike leg. I'm with on the sighting by the sun during the swim. That's pretty much how I found my way back, too. Congrats. Great job. Do I sense a 70.3 for next year? |
| 2008-10-06 7:19 PM in reply to: #1721359 |
Champion 8540    the colony texas | Subject: RE: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic it's never fun sighting into the sun,,, and not being able to pee on yourself either in the water or on the bike just means you have evolved more than the rest of us
good job |
| 2008-10-07 10:53 AM in reply to: #1721359 |
Veteran 218 Plano, Texas | Subject: RE: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic Thanks, gents. Unlikely to do a 70.3, but you never know. Hard for me to up the training hours with wife, three young kids, and a fairly demanding job. Also, I think my body is wired better for shorter distances. I'd like to get into the 2:20s on an Olympic next year. Gary - Did you race this past weekend? Or still recovering from IMKY? Edited by ricro 2008-10-07 10:53 AM |
| 2008-10-07 3:50 PM in reply to: #1724019 |
Champion 8540 the colony texas | Subject: RE: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic just the swim for the relay at longhorn.. I"m milking IMKY for all it's worth  |
| 2008-10-08 7:08 AM in reply to: #1721359 |
Master 2381 Frisco, Texas | Subject: RE: Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon Olympic Solid race. Congrats. Enjoyed reading your RR too. Very nice bike ride. That whole pee-on-the-bike-thing takes practice |
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United States
75F / 24C
Sunny
Overall Rank = 255/515
Age Group = M30-34
Age Group Rank = 22/44
This race marked the return one year later to where my triathlon "career" began. Last year, I did the sprint as my first race ever. This year, after knocking out several more sprint races, I would be doing my first Olympic.
The U.S. Open event is a fun, well organized race. It definitely has a big time feel to it...national event organizer, professionals from around the world competing for significant prize money, a pre-race expo, point-to-point race, and a whole host of other things that definitely separate it from your average age-grouper triathlon. It's also a little pricier than most triathlons, all of which combine to make for a pretty competitive field.
As for pre-race routine, the race directors require that you attend a race course briefing, pick up your packet and drop off your bike on Saturday. At the bike drop off, I was able to get in an 800-meter practice swim on the swim course. Felt good...about a bazillion times better than last year's OWS debacle.
On Sunday, alarm went off at 4:15 after a fairly decent night of sleep. Had everything pretty much packed up, so made my peanut butter bagel, grabbed my hydration out of the fridge and rolled out the door by 4:30. This was earlier than normal because the point-to-point race required racers to set up two different transitions. So I arrived at T2, set up my run gear, and went for short jog. After that, it was on the bus for a 30ish minute ride to Joe Pool Lake. Had plenty of time to set up T1, visit with folks and just soak up the atmosphere. Put on the wetsuit around 7:00 and they cleared out T1 at 7:15.
We didn't go off until after 8:00. Just enough time to realize that I really needed to go to the bathroom, but not enough time to wait in the ridiculously long port-a-john lines. No problem...I'll just pee while I swim, right? Ooops.
After setting up T2, I went for a short 15-minute jog around the AAC. Just wanted to get the heart rate up a little and the blood flowing. Thought about going for a swim after setting up T1, but opted not to so as to not be rushed for time.