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Lake Geneva Triathlon - Half Extreme - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Williams Bay, Wisconsin
United States
Lake Geneva Sports, LLC
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 19m 16s
Overall Rank = 19/170
Age Group = M4044
Age Group Rank = 2/21
Pre-race routine:

Up just before 4:00 AM. Ate a couple muffins, banana and drank a bottle of sports drink. Got a large coffee from McDs. Also picked at a bottle of water. Arrived at start around 5 and got a good spot in transition by the "bike out". that was centrally located between swim finish on one side and the bikein/run out on the other side. That worked well for me.
Event warmup:

Not much really, run/bike/swim. Run was about 1/2 to 3/4 mile jog with a couple pick ups. Biked about 2 miles with some higher cadence stuff at the end. Traffic was terrible and it was very dark and not at all safe to ride. I swam for about 5-10 minutes before the start.
Swim
  • 53m 57s
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 33s / 100 yards
Comments:

I have no explanation why my time was so long other than I swam an extra buoy at the end. I missed the race meeting b/c of arrogance. There was no verbal description of the course and the start caught everyone off guard. I though that sighting, breathing, drafting and navigation were all acceptabel. The first time I realized I had taken a long time wasn't til I was out of the water.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing to do but be a better swimmer. Go to the race meeting.
Transition 1
  • 02m 56s
Comments:

couldn't find the zipper on my suit. otherwise everything went fine.
Bike
  • 2h 28m 12s
  • 56 miles
  • 22.67 mile/hr
Comments:

. Instead of trying to make up time on the bike and run (because there was way too much time to make up) I just stayed on plan to see how my body would respond. The bike was a two lap course with several smallish hills and 90 degree turns. I imagine it is quite similar to the IM-WI course. It's a good course for people that can maintain good cycling efficiency under constantly changing conditions. The was a 1 mile flat before a steady 1 mile climb at 9% grade. After that, its rolling at maybe 4% with about 950ft of climbing and descent per lap. My plan was to maintain an average HR of 147 BPM and I was going to achieve this by beginning at 145 BPM and increasing it by 1 every 10 miles, finishing at 149 BPM. At the start of the bike leg the HR was up to 155 briefly but back down to 145 with 8:00 minutes. I was really happy to see that. I finished the first lap of the ride in 1:13:40 with average HR of 145 and speed of 22.4 mph. Beginning the second lap my HR went only up to 149 on the first big climb before coming right back down. Second lap went a little slower with a total time of 1:14:32 (~22.1 mph) and the same HR of 145. Total time for the bike was 2:28:12, speed 22.3, HR 145. I was in a great mood about my bike numbers at this point. I was definitely feeling a little fatigue in the legs, which was why I couldn't get the heart rate going on the second half of the bike. I made the conscious decision not to push myself up to 148 BPM because I knew I was going really fast and that I would probably pay for it on the run. One last note, I only managed about 2 bottle of sports drink on the ride. It was fairly cool and I wasn't sweating. I couldn't drink more without feeling sick so I didn't. I also at three bags of fruit snacks on the first lap (~100 calories each). They're much cheaper than chomps and I tolerate them better than a sports bar.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing
Transition 2
  • 04m 48s
Comments:

don't know why T2 was so slow other than I had a really long way to go from bike in to my spot and then back to run out.
Run
  • 1h 49m 26s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 21s  min/mile
Comments:

Started the run feeling solid. The run course was a two-loop out and back affair about 3.3 miles to the end. There were about three short steep climbs in the first two miles all with grades up to 15%. So, lots of hills up and down to contend with. Overall, 2000ft each of climbing and descent over the whole run. I walked (briskly) all the climbs and all the aid stations, of which there were five per lap. Heart rate hovered between 145 and 150 on the first half before going completely haywire. I finished the first lap in 54:45 minutes at a 8:33 pace. I wasn't completely happy with this but also not completely disappointed. I was hoping to get closer to 8:00/mile but 8:33 was so much faster than my last race that I was happy. I could have pushed much harder but not without risking a complete failure again so I opted against that. On the second lap I just went on feeling because my heart rate was no longer a useful indicator. Pace was also no good because of all the hills. Second lap was in 54:41, which was wonderful. I was happy to have an even run split and a final time of 1:49:26. Average HR for the run was 146.
What would you do differently?:

I would like to be able to take on some nutrition during the run but don't know if the stomach can handle it. Also would like to get the pace down below 8 minutes.
Post race
Warm down:

I sat in the lake for 10 minutes

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I was limited only by my conditioning. I executed my race plan and it went really well. I took in as much nutrition as I could without making myself sick.

Event comments:

Packet pick-up was a mess with long lines. Transition area was stung out over a really long distance and you had to cross a foot bridge at least twice. Announcements were unclear or non-existant. Sprint and long course of swim crossed paths. No posting of waves and so there was confusion taking off. Races started late. There were no, and I really mean no, spectators for support. No after race activities. Not even a radio playing. Food offerings were bad news.

Now for the good. Lake Geneva is a gem of a lake to swim in. Water temp was perfect for wetsuit/nonwetsuit. Crystal clear. Bike course was a decent wisconsin course. Rolling hills. Road conditions were acceptable to good. Only a couple tricky intersections with high auto-traffic. Run course was very challenging but doable. About 1.5 mile on each loop had heavy auto traffic. Otherwise, quiet streets.




Last updated: 2011-09-15 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:53:57 | 2112 yards | 02m 33s / 100yards
Age Group: 15/21
Overall: 110/170
Performance: Below average
Suit: full
Course: out and back with buoy's always to the left.
Start type: Run Plus: Shot
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 02:56
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Below average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:28:12 | 56 miles | 22.67 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/21
Overall: 3/170
Performance: Good
average HR 145
Wind: None
Course: Two loops rolling.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 83
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 04:48
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:49:26 | 13.1 miles | 08m 21s  min/mile
Age Group: 5/21
Overall: 29/170
Performance: Good
average HR 146
Course: Out and back X2. Big hill climb at start and end of each loop
Keeping cool Average 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? No
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Bad
Race evaluation [1-5] 2

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2011-09-15 9:12 AM

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Subject: Lake Geneva Triathlon - Half Extreme
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