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Blue Norther Duathlon in Seguin - Duathlon


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Seguin, Texas
United States
Seguin Lions Club - Athlete Guild Timing
60F / 16C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 23m 56s
Overall Rank = 8/61
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 2/5
Pre-race routine:

Woke up around 6am, had some breakfast cereal and coffee and threw my gear in the car. I was watching the weather to see if any more fronts were on the way as it stormed all night and was supposed to rain again right at race time. It seemed calm outside though so I had hope that the rain had moved on. Drove out to Seguin around 7:15, just in time to have about 30 minutes to get everything in transition and do some warmups before the race. I had a banana and more coffee on the 30 minute drive.
Not as many folks showed up to the race as usual from what I could tell from previous years results. This race is pretty popular with the Austin crowd, with lots of sponsored athletes from Austin Tri-Cyclist and Jack & Adams. The typical field in the past has been about 175 athletes, but this year only 61. Pro triathletes like Brandon Marsh and Michael Lovato have won here previously, if that tells you how fast the crowd usually is. But this year not as many, although I did see a few folks from ATC and J&A show up.
Event warmup:

I ran into Dwight, and we did an EZ lap around the TLU campus. Then a little dynamic stretching for me, high knees and butt kickers. It was about 60 degrees, so not too cold but there was a good breeze so I decided to put on the arm warmers. They felt good during the first run and bike, but cost me a few seconds down the road.
Hit the port-o-john with about 5 minutes to spare, and I was ready to go! Checked my BG's and I was at 255. Not bad considering what I had just eaten.
Run
  • 20m 26s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 06m 34s  min/mile
Comments:

I moved near the front to start, and when the gun went off I just tried to position myself. The lead runners took off, and a second pack formed behind them. I tried to stay there and just have a good cadence and not go out too hard on the first, as I heard that is a rookie mistake!
So I settle in to what I think is a decent pace but not pushing it, and my Garmin beeps after the first mile. I look and it says 6:18! D'oh! Well, there goes that plan. I wanted to slow the pace a bit but I also didn't want to lose the folks in the pack I was in, so I stayed. It didn't feel too taxing, and the 2nd and 3rd mile were similar times so it was a pretty consistent pace. Got into T1 around 20:30 and was in the Top 10, which surprised me a bit.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really, I think Run #1 went pretty well.
Transition 1
  • 00m 56s
Comments:

I messed with my Garmin for a second to change it from run to bike mode, but that only took a few seconds. Didn't have my shoes clipped into my pedals, as I haven't really mastered that art yet. So I ran in my cleats to the mount line.
Bike
  • 39m 54s
  • 14 miles
  • 21.05 mile/hr
Comments:

I tried to keep my power around 225 watts, as I figured this to be my FTP after a 20 minute test on TrainerRoad last week. I don't know exactly as my PowerTap head unit messed up during the test, but I think it's pretty close, within 10 watts give or take. This was my first time really pacing a race using power. It was hard to keep it at 225, especially on the uphills and downhills! But when my power crept up, I eased back. I had a harder time pushing it when my power creeped down on the downhills, which shows as my average over the course was 197 watts. I wanted to save some for Run #2 as I didn't know how I would feel coming off the bike, but I think I may have left a little bit on the course and could've pushed a bit harder. This was also my first race using an aero helmet. I liked it, but my neck was starting to cramp up a bit so I think I need more practice time with it in the aero position.
I had a bottle with me, but only drank out of it once when I got out of aero on an uphill. It was on the seat tube, which I probably either should have moved it to between the aero bars, or took it off completely. I moved my PowerTap head unit between the bars though, so that made the choice difficult.
I passed three people on the bike and had two pass me, moving me into 9th place going into T2.
What would you do differently?:

Keep my watts at a more consistent level and believe in my FTP! And don't have an un-aero, filled bottle with you that you don't need or use.
Transition 2
  • 01m 12s
Comments:

Only hitch here really is that I tried to take my arm warmers off as I was heating up, and one caught on my Garmin which was on my wrist. Probably cost ~15-20 seconds or so.
What would you do differently?:

Keep 'em on!
Run
  • 21m 27s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 06m 54s  min/mile
Comments:

Here was the true test of my pacing strategy. Could I keep a similar pace to Run #1? I had no idea. My legs felt rubbery after T2, so it took a few minutes to get a good pace going. I just tried to keep up a good cadence. I saw someone ahead of me, and tried to run them down. As they came back to me I started feeling better and kept pushing it. I was a bit surprised to see pretty good times on my Garmin in the mid 6's, so I pushed it all the way in. No one to catch after that first athlete I passed though, they all must have been several minutes ahead of me and I couldn't see them. I sprinted to the line and it was all over. A spectator told me after the race that I had the biggest kick to the finish out of everyone! I guess that means I had extra in the tank and I left something out on the course. Overall I think I paced it pretty good for my first du though, so I feel pretty good about it.
What would you do differently?:

Don't leave anything out there!
Post race
Warm down:

Walked around a bit, talked to some other racers and gave congrats and fist bumps. There was no water at the finish and I was coughing up a storm between just having raced and my allergies acting up all week, so I went into transition and grabbed my bottle.
Checked my BG's and I was at 155 post-race. So overall my glucose control was pretty good.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Nothing really. I felt pretty good, and the temperature was just right. For my first Du, I think I paced it pretty well.

Looking at the results, there were two guys within 30-40 seconds of my time. One had faster transitions than me, and the other was 2 minutes faster on the bike but slower on the runs. So I have a few things to work on!

Event comments:

Overall I really enjoyed this race. I felt it was organized well and I really liked the course. Post race was nice, they had baked potatos and really good cookies, some nice giveaways and good music.
It's been going on for 20+ years now, so there is a reason it's so popular. Not sure why not as many showed up this year, but I'll be back that's for sure.




Last updated: 2013-02-26 12:00 AM
Running
00:20:26 | 03.11 miles | 06m 34s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/5
Overall: 10/61
Performance: Good
1 06m 18s 1.00 miles 06m 18s /mile 161 176 2 06m 27s 1.00 miles 06m 27s /mile 168 176 3 06m 21s 1.00 miles 06m 21s /mile 169 174 4 02m 38s 0.32 miles 08m 17s /mile 166 171
Course: Pretty flat run, 2 loops around Texas Lutheran University Campus with a short run around what appeared to be a trail (gravel) track. It was a little muddy and lots of puddles from the rain.
Keeping cool Drinking
T1
Time: 00:56
Overall: Good
Run with bike?
Jump on bike?
Getting up to speed and into shoes:
Biking
00:39:54 | 14 miles | 21.05 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/5
Overall: 12/61
Performance: Good
1 02m 34s 1.00 miles 23.37 mph 154 163 2 02m 23s 1.00 miles 25.17 mph 164 167 3 02m 53s 1.00 miles 20.80 mph 161 164 4 02m 32s 1.00 miles 23.68 mph 156 162 5 02m 15s 1.00 miles 26.66 mph 163 165 6 02m 56s 1.00 miles 20.45 mph 163 166 7 03m 09s 1.00 miles 19.04 mph 156 164 8 02m 50s 1.00 miles 21.17 mph 161 162 9 03m 07s 1.00 miles 19.25 mph 165 167 10 03m 12s 1.00 miles 18.75 mph 160 165 11 02m 28s 1.00 miles 24.32 mph 160 163 12 02m 46s 1.00 miles 21.68 mph 162 165 13 02m 48s 1.00 miles 21.42 mph 162 164 14 03m 21s 1.00 miles 17.91 mph 163 165 15 00m 31s 0.07 miles 8.18 mph 152 157
Wind: Some
Course: Fairly flat loop south of Seguin. The roads were pretty good for the most part, some a bit chip-sealy but overall not horrible.
Road:   Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Not enough
T2
Time: 01:12
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:21:27 | 03.11 miles | 06m 54s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/5
Overall: 6/61
Performance: Good
1 06m 45s 1.00 miles 06m 45s /mile 162 169 2 06m 21s 1.00 miles 06m 21s /mile 168 170 3 06m 32s 1.00 miles 06m 32s /mile 168 170 4 02m 15s 0.36 miles 06m 15s /mile 171 174
Course: Same as Run #1
Keeping cool Good Drinking Not enough
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
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] 4

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2013-03-11 9:46 AM

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Subject: Blue Norther Duathlon in Seguin
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