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2009-05-13 8:44 PM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
I think the water temp was 62F last year. Two years ago we had wind and rain on the bike leg, and mud on the trails. No matter what, it will be a great day!


2009-05-14 9:30 AM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
vonschnapps - 2009-05-13 9:44 PM

I think the water temp was 62F last year. Two years ago we had wind and rain on the bike leg, and mud on the trails. No matter what, it will be a great day!


So, I take it that it would be wise to bring trail running shoes?
2009-05-14 11:20 AM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
The weather reports keep getting worse.  What happens if there are thunderstorms in the area?
2009-05-14 3:27 PM
in reply to: #2150668

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

We should be OK as long as there is no lightning; Pleasant Prairie a couple of years ago was a "go" eventhough there was a lot of rain and wind; if the water is deemed unsafe, they may change the format and have us all do the Du, or sometimes they give the participants the option of doing the triathlon or entering the duathlon. If the weather is really, really bad they'd cancel it, but the reports on weather.com don't look that bad.

2009-05-14 4:40 PM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
I hope we can get the swim in.  I'll be disappointed if they only have the DU.  Since i started training seriously a year ago I haven't ridden in the rain yet.  Even if there is no lightning, I'd be surprised if it isn't raining based on the forecast.
2009-05-14 5:37 PM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

The weather forecast is starting to look better as the day wears on.  Currently showing morning showers (and only a 30% chance).

I'm thinking it should be a go - swim and all.  Just might want to think about bringing something warm to throw on for the bike.  With a high of just 61 it could be a chilly ride.



2009-05-15 9:23 AM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

I think it's shaping up to be a perfect day tomorrow. I'm betting that since it's a qualifying race for Tuscaloosa, they will make every effort to get the triathlon underway. Have a great race tomorrow.

2009-05-15 9:50 AM
in reply to: #2152781

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

vic1365 - 2009-05-15 10:23 AM

I think it's shaping up to be a perfect day tomorrow. I'm betting that since it's a qualifying race for Tuscaloosa, they will make every effort to get the triathlon underway. Have a great race tomorrow.

vic - I have to say I love your optimism

2009-05-16 8:50 PM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

Well what happened?  There's no race reports up late this evening and I'm kinda of curious as I would've signed up but couldn't get time off work today.

2009-05-16 9:13 PM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
Air temperature was very pleasant at the start of the race, and it wasn't raining, yet. Water temp was 61.5F and it was cold! There were a lot of pleasure boats on the lake, so the water was choppy. The rain started coming down on the bike leg, but it wasn't heavy, and there were only a few areas where we were riding into the wind, and this was just for a short time. It rained a little more during the run, again nothing heavy. Trail had a few mud holes, and a few standing water puddles, but wasn't in too bad of shape. The air temp dropped during the race, and the wind picked up, so it was sort of cold at the end of the race. I didn't hear of any bike accidents or other difficulties from anyone.

Next year I'm just going to do the du, although the trail is not an easy run. Lots of rollers, and some quick steep hills. I didn't position myself correctly at the swim start and was jammed up, got my goggles knocked off, and never did get into a good stroke rhythm. Swallowed too much water, and the waves in the water almost made be lose it. Plus, there's nothing worse than the first time you put your face into 61.5F water!

2009-05-17 6:35 AM
in reply to: #2155404

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
Like Von said, water was cold but was actually about 1.5 deg warmer than last year.  The real story was the weather, wind picked up a bit on the bike, rain started during the bike too but I really thought the course conditions were rough.  There were a few slick spots on the road with gravel from some wash-out.  The race organizers did a great job, it could have been worse for sure, but the trail was really sloppy.  I liked the 5" deep - 10 ft long puddle around mile 4 in the grassy area.  For a second I thought we were headed back into the lake for another swim leg.

Many more participants this year, much more competition and nice job again by the race organizers.


2009-05-17 6:54 AM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

The conditions were pretty rough, but overall I thought it was a fantastic day for a race. Does anyone know if the official results/splits are posted yet? I can't seem to find them anywhere on the race web site.

2009-05-17 7:07 AM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
Pretty much echo the others on the conditions. I did the Du and that run course is tough! I thought it was pretty sloppy in spots but it was a blast! I didn't run nearly as well as I had hoped but my overall time was good thanks to a good bike. I'm glad I brought my trail runners! I thought the bike course was a nice mix of rollers to make it just enough of a challenge. By the second run my legs were shot and my 5K time was horrible! I just couldn't get up the hills but all in all it was a great event!
2009-05-17 7:36 AM
in reply to: #2155432

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
vonschnapps - 2009-05-16 10:13 PM Air temperature was very pleasant at the start of the race, and it wasn't raining, yet. Water temp was 61.5F and it was cold! There were a lot of pleasure boats on the lake, so the water was choppy. The rain started coming down on the bike leg, but it wasn't heavy, and there were only a few areas where we were riding into the wind, and this was just for a short time. It rained a little more during the run, again nothing heavy. Trail had a few mud holes, and a few standing water puddles, but wasn't in too bad of shape. The air temp dropped during the race, and the wind picked up, so it was sort of cold at the end of the race. I didn't hear of any bike accidents or other difficulties from anyone. Next year I'm just going to do the du, although the trail is not an easy run. Lots of rollers, and some quick steep hills. I didn't position myself correctly at the swim start and was jammed up, got my goggles knocked off, and never did get into a good stroke rhythm. Swallowed too much water, and the waves in the water almost made be lose it. Plus, there's nothing worse than the first time you put your face into 61.5F water!


You may have been right in front of me in the swim.  I saw a pair of goggles sinking toward the bottom.

I found the cold made it hard to get into a rythym for the swim and didn't get into a good stroke until after the turn-around.  I swallowed a couple of mouthfuls of water before the second cone.  This being my second tri, I was wondering how they account for the time and distance getting from the water to the transition area.  I was 24:36 getting out of the water, which would be my best for the distance, but it took me 2 minutes to get up the stairs and to the transition area.

For the bike I had just gotten new shorter crank arms and had only ridden once with them.  They helped my knees, but my seat was too low and this seemed to make it more difficult coming back into the wind.

The run was tough but kind of peaceful.  For the most part, I felt like I was the only person in the race as people were pretty spread out and you couldn't see very far ahead or behind.

The best part of the race was the huge fire in the fireplace in the pavilion.
2009-05-17 8:24 AM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

Wow.  That was fun and horrible all at the same time!  I ended up having a bad race.  I think us slow pokes got hammered a bit more with the wind and rain.  I have never been more ready to be off my bike in all my life!  And those trails!  My shoes definitely have that "worn in" look now - they went from white to brown in no time flat!  Still, despite the tough day I'm ready to do it all again next year!

2009-05-17 10:46 AM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
I had the best swim of the three years.  I was very pleased with my bike time ...until I flatted at mile 19.  It takes me a LONG time to fix flats and then, I did not get it fully inflated.  I also found after the fact that my tire rubbed my frame for the whole last 6 miles.  I went from 18.5 mph average (good for me) to 16.0 average after the flat (22 minutes to get the flat fixed).  During the flat fixing time, the temp dropped and the rain and wind picked up.  If I hadn't flatted and had maintained my average mph, I would have met my goal of 3:12.

I am sure I was the last lonely soul out there in the trail slop, but I did not DNF.  It wasn't pretty, but I successfully fixed the flat and finished.

Can you overinflate a tube if you use two CO2 cartidges?  I was afraid I would explode my tube if I used a second CO2. 


2009-05-17 6:24 PM
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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
The best way to describe this race for me was controlled dying...eieieieiei

The swim would have been about a million times worse had my bike team teammate not had an extra wetsuit which conveniently fit me perfectly, but swimming my first legitimate open water 1500m swim at the same time as swimming for the first time in a wetsuit probably was not the best idea.  I was veering allll over the place and never really found any rhythm, in part because of me having a deathly fear of the bottom of lakes haha

The run up to transition for the bike was longer than I would have liked, especially after swallowing half the lake, buuut after struggling to get the wetsuit off (another first) I was able to get on and get going pretty quickly.  Having an aero helmet for the first time felt sooo much faster (largely psychological I'm sure), but I really did enjoy the course and did way more time passing people than getting passed (with the exception of when I slowed down to get some gu).  I took it pretty easy and was glad all of my winter Little 500 training served me well in the pedal stroke department.  Minor pain in the lower back because my wonderful '05 Trek 1000 is not set up right at all, but oh well, you live and you learn.

T2 went as smoothly as I could have asked for.  Said hi to the mom (who was of course taking cameraphone pictures), made a few jokes with the people around me, threw on the newtons and was on my way.  Unfortunately, things went pretty far south after that, to say the least.  The run could best be described as prolonged, controlled dying (hence the first line of this post).  My legs were dead, I was fighting major stomach cramps, and after having some of that Heed crap, all my body wanted to do was vomit.  Seriously, gatorade next year please?  I couldn't really go longer than a half mile or so without having to stop, which was just not fun AT ALL.  Made it to the finish line though, and qualified for nationals (by finishing....), so hopefully by late August I'll be able to resolve most of these issues.

Overall though, a pretty well-run race, my only complaint being the lack of gatorade/powerade and maybe some bagels instead of pancakes...

Who was the 50-year old guy rocking a BT jersey on the bike?  I passed/got passed by you like 5 times over the course of the bike, and was going to try and chit chat with you on the run but that obviously didn't happen!


Edited by dodachacha 2009-05-17 6:25 PM
2009-05-18 8:03 AM
in reply to: #2156401

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
dodachacha - 2009-05-17 7:24 PM The best way to describe this race for me was controlled dying...eieieieiei

The swim would have been about a million times worse had my bike team teammate not had an extra wetsuit which conveniently fit me perfectly, but swimming my first legitimate open water 1500m swim at the same time as swimming for the first time in a wetsuit probably was not the best idea.  I was veering allll over the place and never really found any rhythm, in part because of me having a deathly fear of the bottom of lakes haha

The run up to transition for the bike was longer than I would have liked, especially after swallowing half the lake, buuut after struggling to get the wetsuit off (another first) I was able to get on and get going pretty quickly.  Having an aero helmet for the first time felt sooo much faster (largely psychological I'm sure), but I really did enjoy the course and did way more time passing people than getting passed (with the exception of when I slowed down to get some gu).  I took it pretty easy and was glad all of my winter Little 500 training served me well in the pedal stroke department.  Minor pain in the lower back because my wonderful '05 Trek 1000 is not set up right at all, but oh well, you live and you learn.

T2 went as smoothly as I could have asked for.  Said hi to the mom (who was of course taking cameraphone pictures), made a few jokes with the people around me, threw on the newtons and was on my way.  Unfortunately, things went pretty far south after that, to say the least.  The run could best be described as prolonged, controlled dying (hence the first line of this post).  My legs were dead, I was fighting major stomach cramps, and after having some of that Heed crap, all my body wanted to do was vomit.  Seriously, gatorade next year please?  I couldn't really go longer than a half mile or so without having to stop, which was just not fun AT ALL.  Made it to the finish line though, and qualified for nationals (by finishing....), so hopefully by late August I'll be able to resolve most of these issues.

Overall though, a pretty well-run race, my only complaint being the lack of gatorade/powerade and maybe some bagels instead of pancakes...

Who was the 50-year old guy rocking a BT jersey on the bike?  I passed/got passed by you like 5 times over the course of the bike, and was going to try and chit chat with you on the run but that obviously didn't happen!

That was me.  I qualified for the nationals as well getting 5th in the 50-54 age group.  I noticed my time would have been 1st in my age group for the first 2 years by 10-12 minutes.  Alas my shot at glory passed by for this race.

I signed up for the race the first week in January and was the first entry and thus had #1.  I impressed several people before the race, but had to let them know the #1 was definitely NOT based on anticipated performance.
2009-05-18 8:18 AM
in reply to: #1961815

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread

I thought the race was very well run and a great venue for a qualifier.  The run course is mentally very tough to get through - hands down the toughest I have encountered.  I actually took a spill at mile 5 just past the aid station in one of the mud pits but no harm done.  I also like the pool in the grass section that made my shoes about 10 pounds heavier for 500 yards or so.

Lake James was very nice to swim in and water temp was nice actually although my body probably had to work a little harder to keep warm. 

This is a good race and I have never been so happy to see a finish line.

2009-05-18 12:45 PM
in reply to: #2157216

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Subject: RE: Pokagon State Park Triathlon : Official Thread
nickster - 2009-05-18 8:03 AM
That was me.  I qualified for the nationals as well getting 5th in the 50-54 age group.  I noticed my time would have been 1st in my age group for the first 2 years by 10-12 minutes.  Alas my shot at glory passed by for this race.

I signed up for the race the first week in January and was the first entry and thus had #1.  I impressed several people before the race, but had to let them know the #1 was definitely NOT based on anticipated performance.

Congrats to you...I'm glad I finally have made some sort of BT connection at a race!

rymac - 2009-05-18 8:18 AM

This is a good race and I have never been so happy to see a finish line.


Could not agree with you more...
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