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5430 Long Course Triathlon - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Boulder, Colorado
United States
5430 Sports Corp.
70F / 21C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 03m 5s
Overall Rank = 185/1134
Age Group = M30-34
Age Group Rank = 24/103
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4:25 for coffee, shower, etc. to leave the host hotel at 5:00. I wasn't about to make the same mistake as Lubbock. I wanted to be at transition 1 hour before it closed. I did that and everything worked perfectly.

Four scoops of Perpetuem that I drank in transition. One HoneyStinger about 10 minutes before my wave started.
Event warmup:

Little stretching of my arms before the swim. Maybe I should try a warm-up. Each of my last races, I have felt like getting out of the water and becoming a duathlete after only a few hundred meters.


Swim
  • 41m 56s
  • 1931 meters
  • 02m 10s / 100 meters
Comments:

I was not happy with my swim. I felt like I wanted to get out of the water after a few hundred meters. Nothing felt particularly off, I just didn't feel good.

I didn't drat particularly well as the swim was pretty spread out. I started to feel good with about 800 meters to go. I navigated well but still finished about 2 minutes slower than I wanted to.
What would you do differently?:

Train more.
Transition 1
  • 01m 13s
Comments:

Wetsuit got stuck on both heels. This race had individual bike racks instead of the bars and triangles. I didn't have anything to grab onto for stability while using my feet to pull the wetsuit off. Had to get down on one knee to get it off. Likely cost me a few seconds, but no big deal.

Other than that, I was pretty fast in and out.
Bike
  • 2h 34m 33s
  • 56 miles
  • 21.74 mile/hr
Comments:

Great bike! My average speed was far above what I thought was possible. I thought 21 was doable on this course given the results from past years. I went 21.7. I really pushed it and felt pretty tired on the second lap but was able to stretch and maintain a good pace into the finish. Had some very minor cramp/muscle tightening in my left quad near the end.
What would you do differently?:

Not a whole lot. I had a little difficulty motivating and focussing on getting nutrition in me because I was focussed on riding. Also, because it was not hot, I didn't really feel the need to drink as much as I normally do. I should work on sticking to a nutrition plan more than just going on feel.
Transition 2
  • 01m 4s
Comments:

Good transition. Got my feet out of the shoes early and coasted off the saddle to the line with plenty of time to hop off in control. As I racked my bike, I knocked the bike next to me over so I had to stop and pick it up. Again, cost a few seconds, but a good transition none the less.
What would you do differently?:

Not knock over bikes.
Run
  • 1h 44m 21s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 07m 58s  min/mile
Comments:

Good run. I was under 8s for the first 5 or 6 miles and thought I was on pace for somewhere around a 1:40 time. I had to stop at mile 6.5 for a port-o-can. GI issues. Only peed and felt better. Cost me a little over a minute (I seem to stop on every HIM).

I had trouble with my pacing and the hills on the first 3 miles of Loop 2. I tried to pick it up after that. I had difficulty maintaining 8s, but I did it. I really tried to go faster the last 2 miles. I was really running out of gas by that point and I knew I wouldn't break 5hrs, but I also knew I was going to be inside of 5:05 so I felt pretty good. The finishing bit was downhill, thank goodness. I really gave it everything I had at the end. I wanted to stop with 300m to go but i managed to kick it home and finished with a god, but average, run time for me. The overall time was great.
What would you do differently?:

I think the aggressive bike cost me a couple minutes on the run as I really struggled to bring it home. I was feeling out of breathe and simply didn't have any speed left. But this was a bikers course so I think I raced it well.
Post race
Warm down:

Found Robin. Got a bottle of water and ent immediately to the massage tent. GREAT and long massage. Hardly even sore the next day. The massage was a huge help.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

perhaps the altitude, but I think I really just gave it everything I had.

Event comments:

PR for me by 17 minutes. Very good race. Super fast course. Makes me think I could break 5 hours on a faster course like something in Florida.




Last updated: 2009-08-10 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:41:56 | 1931 meters | 02m 10s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/103
Overall: 680/1134
Performance: Average
Suit: Blue Seventy Reaction Sleeveless
Course: Rectanglar out and back, counter clockwise
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current: Low
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Below average Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:13
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:34:33 | 56 miles | 21.74 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/103
Overall: 185/1134
Performance: Good
HR high to start as it took me a little while to settle in. Up in the 170s for the first few miles. The gradual climb up was in the first few as well so it stayed high early. Settled into a nice pace and cadence around 90 with a HR between 150 and 163 for most of the ride after. I was in the low 150s for the second half.
Wind: Some
Course: Great course. It felt like there was a lot of downhill. No major climbs like Lubbock or even Vineman and Longhorn. Wind picked up for the second lap and made it a little slower.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 90
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:04
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:44:21 | 13.1 miles | 07m 58s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/103
Overall: 156/1134
Performance: Good
HR avg. 171 or 173 for the first 6 miles. Then I picked it up a bit. Avg. 177 for miles 7-11. 12 was 183, 13 was 191.
Course: 2 loops. Dirt roads and trail. Around the park and dam.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
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] 5

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2009-08-11 9:19 AM

Member
66
2525
Subject: 5430 Long Course Triathlon


2009-08-11 9:25 AM
in reply to: #2340997

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Expert
2555
20005002525
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Subject: RE: 5430 Long Course Triathlon
Nice race. Very solid bike and run. It was getting hot on the second loop of the run and you managed to push through. Maybe a better swim would have taken you under 5 hours. WTG!
2009-08-11 11:29 AM
in reply to: #2340997

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Master
1651
10005001002525
Breckenridge, CO
Subject: RE: 5430 Long Course Triathlon
Great race, huge PR, and fantastic run split!
2009-08-11 1:21 PM
in reply to: #2340997

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, North Carolina
Subject: RE: 5430 Long Course Triathlon

There's no doubt you could break 5 hours if you aren't dealing with altitude.  I don't think that's an easy run course and you smoked it.  Congratulations on the PR.  Smile

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