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Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course - TriathlonOlympic


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Brighton, Michigan
United States
Element Events
Precipitation
Total Time = 3h 14m 41s
Overall Rank = 163/185
Age Group = 40-45
Age Group Rank = 21/22
Pre-race routine:

Got up at 4:30 and had my usual breakfast of 2 eggs, toast, coffee and a banana. Got to the race site before 6 so I had plenty of time to set up and relax.
Event warmup:

I did some stretching, and just worked on keeping my mind calm. I spent a lot of time watching the water.
Swim
  • 34m 30s
  • 1640 yards
  • 02m 06s / 100 yards
Comments:

For some reason my race chip did not give any split times or transition times. I checked my watch when I came out of the water.

I picked my pace right from the start, and just tried to stay comfortable. I kept my form strong the whole time. Usually when I'm training and I start to get tired I don't rotate my body and I can feel it in my shoulders. This never happened.

It got a little crowded on my second lap since it was a wave start and the later waves were coming in, but it was okay. I had to change course a few times to get around people who looked like they were just learning to swim.

On a funny note, I capsized one of the race volunteers in a kayak. For some reason they were in the middle of the course, not off to the side. I was swimming along and my head clunked something. I looked up to see the bottom of a kayak rolling away from me with feet going over with it. Oops.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. I swam at a good pace, did a pretty good job of sighting, and didn't get too tangled up with the other swimmers.
Transition 1
  • 00m
Comments:

I thought this went well for my first transition. I got the wetsuit off easily, and put on my socks and bike shoes, then glasses and helmet. I stuck 2 gels in my shirt pockets. I wore my shirt under my wetsuit, which definitely saved me some time.
Bike
  • 1h 29m
  • 24.8 miles
  • 16.72 mile/hr
Comments:

This time includes both T1 and T2 since my chip didn't work right. According to my bike, I was averaging over 17mph the whole race, which is really good for me.

The course was on the roads in the park, so there were cars occasionally, but it wasn't bad. It was mostly flat or low rolling hills. I would drop to about 14mph on the uphills, and get into the upper 20s on the downhills.

It started raining less than halfway through, and rained pretty hard for awhile during my second lap. There was a lot of spray from other bikes. About 2 miles into lap 2, my legs started to get really heavy. I had been drinking some Gatorade about every 8 minutes. At this point, I took a gel and switched to water. I think that helped. I was definitely running out of gas towards the end. My legs gave everything they had.

The crowd really thinned out on lap 2, and most of the people out there were passing me. I just tried to keep my average at 17, which I did. The rain stopped just before I finished the bike. I kept my hands on the drop bars for almost the whole race. I moved up to the brake hoods on the hill climbs. My feet were so wet I could hear my toes squishing on every downstroke.
What would you do differently?:

I feel like I gave 100% on the bike, and didn't make any mistakes.
Transition 2
  • 00m
Comments:

I racked my bike, hung my helmet and glasses, and took off my shoes and socks. It had been raining for awhile, and my hands were really cold. I had a hard time tying my shoes. I was glad that I had brought an extra pair of socks, and they were under a plastic bag with my shoes.
Run
  • 1h 12m
  • 6.2 miles
  • 11m 37s  min/mile
Comments:

The course started with a hill, which my legs did not appreciate. They were tired from the bike, and for the first half mile or so, I felt like the might cramp up, but they got into their rhythm and felt fine. My shoe came untied since my frozen fingers hadn't been able to tie them right, so I had to stop for a few seconds and re-tie it.

I settled into my usual 10-minute pace, which I was able to maintain for the first couple miles, then I slowed to about 10:30 for mile 3 and 11 for mile 4. I thought I'd try to pick up the pace a little, but my legs said no.

I had a sip of water twice, and worked very hard on slow deep breathing. The last couple miles were totally mental. My legs were spent. Fortunately, the hills on the course were very gradual, with the exception of the one at the start of each lap. The last third of each lap was on grass, which had not become slick or muddy from all the rain.

I worked the whole time on my breathing, and keeping my upper body relaxed and in good form. I normally train at about 10 minute miles, so this was a little off my pace, but I'm still happy with my time.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. My form was good, and my breathing was good.
Post race
Warm down:

I drank some water and ate a turkey wrap, then sat down and stretched out my hamstrings.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I'm happy with my performance for my first triathlon. Obviously, more training would result in faster times, but I trained 6 days a week for 5 months for this race, and considering that 6 months ago I couldn't swim 100 yards, and a year ago I ran my first 5K, I think that my finish time is great.

Event comments:

There were lots of volunteers to make sure that no one got off course, and to direct traffic since bikes were sharing the road with cars. They even had a drink station at mile 5 on the bike course. The run course had 2 drink stations for sprint, 4 for oly.

The pre-race meetings were clear and informative, and the course was well-marked from start to finish.




Last updated: 2012-05-27 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:34:30 | 1640 yards | 02m 06s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/185
Performance: Good
Suit: Full wetsuit
Course:
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 74F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Good Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 00:00
Performance:
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
01:29:00 | 24.8 miles | 16.72 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/185
Performance: Good
Wind:
Course: 2 laps through the State Park roads on gentle rolling hills.
Road: Smooth  Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 00:00
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:12:00 | 06.2 miles | 11m 37s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/22
Overall: 0/185
Performance: Good
Course: 2 laps, about 70% paved and 30% grass. One steep grassy uphill right at the start, and one steep dirt downhill shortly before the finish.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

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2012-05-27 10:40 AM

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Member
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Subject: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course


2012-05-27 7:04 PM
in reply to: #4231124

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Extreme Veteran
344
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South Lake Tahoe, Ca.
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course

Great race!!!

Keep up the hard work.

 

2012-05-28 7:04 AM
in reply to: #4231124

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Master
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Fort Wayne
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course

Good race David!  You have made your first Olympic a solid performance experience.  Your bike leg was pounded out pretty hard and swimming a mile at a great pace.  You completed your swim the way you should have, IMO, by keeping a good rhythm and not getting worked up due to the race atmosphere.

Congratulations on the first of many triathlon experiences!

2012-05-28 7:16 AM
in reply to: #4231124

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Expert
1439
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Tallahassee
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course
GREAT report and race, thanks for posting!
2012-05-28 11:47 AM
in reply to: #4231124

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Expert
1249
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MI
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course
Great to see that you were able to accomplish your goal!  It was fun cheering you on out there with Leah.  Hope you have fun on your journey to the half marathon, or whatever it is you choose to do next.
2012-05-29 10:12 AM
in reply to: #4231124

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Master
2327
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Columbia, TN
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course
I am impressed with how well you executed your first Oly tri.  Based on your recent start with triathlon, your innate athleticism shows.  Congrats.


2012-05-29 11:54 AM
in reply to: #4231124

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NH
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course
Great first effort.  Olympic is a pretty big bite for your first triathlon, and you executed very well.  You had a plan and made it happen, and that's a huge victory.  Great job.
2012-05-29 3:23 PM
in reply to: #4231124

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Veteran
498
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Redding, CA
Subject: RE: Island Lake Triathlon, Spring - Olympic Course

Great job, David! Going right for an Olympic for your first Tri ever was ambitious. Way to hang in there and finish even in adverse weather conditions, too.

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