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Washington Half - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Washington, North Carolina
United States
FS Series
44F / 7C
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 23m 33s
Overall Rank = 1/112
Age Group = M35-39
Age Group Rank = 1/12
Pre-race routine:

Up at 6:15, layer up with for the low 40 temps, load the car, grab a sausage biscuit and coffee before checking out and heading for the race site.
Event warmup:

Minimal - some quick run drills to move the legs and 2-3min of swimming before the start.
Swim
  • 29m 47s
  • 1931 meters
  • 01m 32s / 100 meters
Comments:

A group of 10-15 guys blew out ahead immediately but I just focus on doing my thing. The water was calm and for the most part the sun was off to the side or behind. I had my standard swim - holding a reasonable intensity but not feeling like I was swimming particularly fast...just getting it done. Seems most of the guys out in front only had 30-60sec on me but I didn't really know where things stood at the time.
Transition 1
  • 03m 43s
Comments:

What a disaster! I had the 33rd ranked T1 thanks to wrestling with a LS bike jersey and gloves. I knew getting that stuff on over wet skin wouyld be a challenge but I really struggled. Still, it was only in the 40s and I didn't want to be miserable out on the bike. I could only hope everyone else was having as much trouble. Looks like I gave up a lot of time - could have easily been under 60sec if this was more moderate temps and I didn't need any additional gear.
What would you do differently?:

I had to decide between speed and freezing my ass off for 2+ hours.
Bike
  • 2h 21m 9s
  • 56 miles
  • 23.80 mile/hr
Comments:

Despite a lot of rough surface roads and getting uncomfortable in the saddle I had a good ride, although I didn't really know it at the time. I left T1 not knowing how many guys were out ahead of me or how far out. I passed 3 within the first 20 miles or so and then spent a lot of time looking ahead at empty road. Eventually I caught a glimpse of another rider that turned out to be a female from a relay team. Then more empty road. I just stuck with the pacing paln. There wasn't any strong wind but definitely some light breeze that seemed to be coming head-on a lot. The roads were also not the best surface although in a car I bet they'd seem pretty nice. Nothing that everyone else out there didn't have to contend with. I was holding steady around 85% FT and it was manageable but definitely felt to be on the upper limit considering I had to run. With about 1 miles to go I saw some flashing lights up ahead just disappear around a corner. It was the lead biker with an escort car. I tried not to let excitement take over but I probably pushed a little harder for the next 20min. I came into transition about 30sec back. I'll have to check but I think 2:21 might be a bke split PR for me.
Transition 2
  • 00m 55s
Comments:

Better than T1 but still wasted time. I mostly struggled to pull the damn gloves off. Again, in warmer conditions this would have been a 30sec transition easy. Jersey came off fairly easily and I grabbed my hat, number belt, Garmin and headed for the run.
Run
  • 1h 27m 59s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 06m 43s  min/mile
Comments:

The transition debacle continued out onto the run. I typically just grab my number, hat, and Garmin and get things situated as I jog the first 30sec of the run. For some reason things just didn't go smoothly this time. My hat was flipped inside out so I stopped quick to fix it. Then I couldn't seem to get my Garmin started and on my wrist without stopping again. Finally I got rolling but that gave the leader another 15-20sec on his lead. I had no idea who this guy was or what kind of runner he was but I could see him ahead and I figured if I just focused on my own thing I'd either catch him or he'd run away. Either way I needed to mostly forget about him. I settled in to what felt comfortable but was probably slightly too fast and logged 6:30ish for the first couple miles but that steadily reeled him in and I made the pass right at mile 2 then put in a little surge hoping to discourage him from trying to respond or sit on my shoulder. I liked the double out-back course because I could easily see who wa around and if I was holding my lead or not. I made a point of not looking back. After the first u-turn I saw that he was a good 200m back at least then it was another 2-3min before the next guy. If everything held steady for the last 9 miles I figured I'd put 2-300m into him on each leg and be close to a mile ahead by the finish. After the second u-turn when I saw my lead doubled I started to get a little conservative and pull back on the pace. My quads were feeling tight and I may have cramped up if I tried to maintain 6:30 pace. I figured it was better to not completely blow it and give up a little time on a potentially faster run split. I used my usual strategy of stopping at every aid station to get my fluids, and a quick stretch. I think they had a local sorority "manning" the aid stations - they found dudes in lycra body suits amusing but they were very sweet and supportive (the girls, not the body suit).
What would you do differently?:

Hopefully get my act together a little sooner coming out of transition but otherwise this was pretty solid execution and pacing. I could have tried to keep the pace up but risked a crash and burn finish.
Post race
Warm down:

Not much - a little walking, grab a Coke, catch my breath.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nothing specific - keep training!

Event comments:

Nice little event with good organization and sufficient support. Hooded sweatshirts are a keeper. I didn't hang around for the awards but they had music playing and water/soda available for the participants. Everyone also got a $5 voucher to use with the food vender. This was a different approach but seemed to work fine. It wasn't unlimited grub or a big spread with a lot of options but it got me 2X chili dogs and a bag of chips - good enough.




Last updated: 2010-11-01 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:29:47 | 1931 meters | 01m 32s / 100meters
Age Group: 4/12
Overall: 9/112
Performance: Good
Suit: 2XU full
Course: Single loop triangle formation. Orange turn buoys and single yellow sighting buoy on each length.
Start type: Wade Plus: Shot
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting:
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:43
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
02:21:09 | 56 miles | 23.80 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/12
Overall: 1/112
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Single loop on mostly rural roads. A lot of the road surface wasn't great despite the organizers telling us how much "really nice road" we would have.
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:55
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
01:27:59 | 13.1 miles | 06m 43s  min/mile
Age Group: 1/12
Overall: 2/112
Performance: Good
Lap Time Distance Pace/Speed AHR MHR 1 06m 32s 1.00 miles 06m 32s /mile 2 06m 25s 1.00 miles 06m 25s /mile 3 06m 37s 1.00 miles 06m 37s /mile 4 06m 34s 1.00 miles 06m 34s /mile 5 06m 44s 1.00 miles 06m 44s /mile 6 06m 43s 1.00 miles 06m 43s /mile 7 06m 56s 1.00 miles 06m 56s /mile 8 06m 52s 1.00 miles 06m 52s /mile 9 06m 55s 1.00 miles 06m 55s /mile 10 06m 55s 1.00 miles 06m 55s /mile 11 06m 44s 1.00 miles 06m 44s /mile 12 06m 51s 1.00 miles 06m 51s /mile 13 06m 24s 1.00 miles 06m 24s /mile 14 00m 10s 0.03 miles 04m 52s /mile
Course: Double out-back through town and down the closed lane of the main road out of town - over a couple of low-rise bridges. Not the best run course but not bad.
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2010-11-01 2:24 PM

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Pro
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Virginia Beach, VA
Subject: Washington Half


2010-11-01 2:38 PM
in reply to: #3189166

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Extreme Veteran
391
100100100252525
Olive Branch, MS
Subject: RE: Washington Half
Great race, great win!
I had a similar experience in t1 in the cold weather this weekend. I'm not so sure that a frozes a** might not have been better than the frustration of a slow t1!!
2010-11-01 8:45 PM
in reply to: #3189166

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Veteran
215
100100
North Carolina
Subject: RE: Washington Half
Congratulations on your win, I was whining about the wind on my RR, I was hoping someone would whine with me but I see its not gonna be you!
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