General Discussion Race Reports! » Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev Rss Feed  
Moderators: k9car363, alicefoeller Reply

Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Knoxville, Tennessee
United States
REVOLUTION3 Triathlon
55F / 13C
Precipitation
Total Time = 5h 58m
Overall Rank = ?/
Age Group = 35-39f
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Laid out my clothes at 9pm on race eve only to realize I never grabbed my triathlon shorts. Oops. Tried not to panic. Quickly looked up a Dick's Sporting Goods, got there 5 minutes before closing time and grabbed a too-big pair of women's cycling shorts with a diaper-size chamois. They would have to suffice. This was to be an Omen of things to come.
Event warmup:

After a peanut butter and banana sandwich, we left the hotel and found ourselves in a cold, wet morning. We decided to jog to transition in order to stay warm. Put on my sleeveless wetsuit and neoprene swim cap and headed to the river.
Swim
  • 47m
  • 2112 yards
  • 02m 14s / 100 yards
Comments:

Jumped into the river and immediately panicked as the frigid water shocked the system. I am a weak swimmer who has never done an OWS in temps under 70 so this was basically a welcome to Hell for me. Several people swam back to the start right away. I kept my head above the water and panicked for a few minutes, thought about finding a kayak, thought about swimming to shore and finally decided to just gut it out. After a few minutes I got into somewhat of a rhythm. There was definitely a current, so the downstream portion was easier. I could not stop shivering throughout the entire swim, and when I finally got out I was so cold and dizzy that I could barely walk to transition.
What would you do differently?:

Avoid races with cold water swims! That was just too brutal.
Transition 1
  • 00m
Comments:

Wow, I had to wrap myself in a towel and try to warm up for about 10 minutes. It was at this point that I lost my timing chip. A few people asked if I was ok, because apparently my lips were blue. After a long while, I put on a fleece and headed out on the bike.
What would you do differently?:

Safety pin the timing chip so that it didn't come off with my wetsuit! I had noticed the velcro was flimsy, but the genius idea of a safety pin was not learned until I headr someone mention it later.
Bike
  • 3h 03m
  • 56 miles
  • 18.36 mile/hr
Comments:

This was a miserable ride. The fleece was not a good idea, as it was soaked after two minutes and kept me cold. I shivered throughout the ride. 2 miles in I dropped my chain and could not get it back on since my hands were shaking so bad. Got back on and it happened again another mile in. Other than the mechanical difficulties and borderline hypothermia, it would have been a good ride. COurse was less hilly than expected. Ate two waffles and a gu and drank about 20oz GU brew. Garmin said about 19mph moving time so that was fine for the wet, cold conditions. I passed a ton of people and only got passed by the pro Olympic guys, which was cool.
What would you do differently?:

Bring a raincoat!!!!!!!!! I will ALWAYS have a raincoat in my gear bag from now on.
Transition 2
  • 00m
Comments:

No idea, maybe 5-10 minutes? Got into transition and was starving for a Clif bar. My hands were shaking so much that I could not open it. Tried for several minutes before stabbing it open with a coat hanger, and stabbed my thumb in the process. Finally, put on shoes and headed out.
What would you do differently?:

Have my food pre-opened.
Run
  • 1h 50m
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 24s  min/mile
Comments:

I knew right away that this run would not go well so I decided to take it easy and hit 8-8:30 pace. My legs were just too numb and cold, and everything hurt. Then, the blisters kicked in. By day's end, I would have 9 and 11 blisters on my feet, and shoes covered in blood. I guess that is why they say don't wear anything new on race day. At the turnaround I saw my hubby just in front of me, running barefoot and carrying his shoes. The blisters got him, too. I grabbed a big bag of pretzels from an aid station and started eating them and offering them to other runners as I passed them. No one wanted any and no one looked too happy to be passed by a girl stuffing pretzels down her throat. FInally, caught up to hubby and we suffered through the last five miles. Held hands across the line and kissed for the photo!
What would you do differently?:

SIgn up for a different race with warmer water temps. Rev3 did everything right, but man, this was about the most difficult thing I've physically ever done.
Post race
Warm down:

Ran to my bathtub and after twenty minutes in hot water I stopped shivering!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

That damn, freezing cold Tennessee River combined with the cold rain. I had no shot of a good performance.

Event comments:

Nicely done event but glad it's done.




Last updated: 2013-01-02 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:47:00 | 2112 yards | 02m 14s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Bad
Suit: Sleeveless
Course: Tennessee River, upstream and then downstream for the longer portion. The river was supposed to be 58 degrees but it felt colder than that.
Start type: Deep Water Plus:
Water temp: 58F / 14C Current:
200M Perf. Bad Remainder: Bad
Breathing: Bad Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Bad
Rounding: Bad
T1
Time: 00:00
Performance:
Cap removal: Bad Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:03:00 | 56 miles | 18.36 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Wind: None
Course: Gently rolling with some steep hills the last 10 miles. Pretty technical with lots of turns as well.
Road: Smooth  Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:00
Overall: Bad
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
01:50:00 | 13.1 miles | 08m 24s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Course: Steep hills and flooded roads with some parts in knee-deep water. It felt like a Tough Mudder, especially the second half.
Keeping cool Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
Good race? No
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] 3

{postbutton}
2013-05-06 2:43 PM

User image

New user
322
100100100
KY
Subject: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev


2013-05-07 7:49 AM
in reply to: #4729925

User image

Veteran
437
10010010010025
Pittsburgh, PA
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev
Nice job getting through it. I wonder how many DNF'd? Looking at the results it seems it may be a large number.
2013-05-07 7:44 PM
in reply to: #4729925

User image

New user
322
100100100
KY
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev
When I found my chip (inside my wetsuit) I turned it into a volunteer and she said "Put it in that box with the others."  Well, the box consisted of about 100 chips, so they must have been from people who DNF'd or lost them in transition like myself.
2013-05-07 8:44 PM
in reply to: #4729925

User image

Master
1686
1000500100252525
Royersford, PA
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev
Great job! That was one of the more challenging days I've had out there too. The last three years the temps were in the 70s or 80s and water in high 60s to low 70s, but Sunday was just a bear. Very nice recovery after a rough start!
2013-05-08 4:54 AM
in reply to: #4732358

User image

Expert
1618
1000500100
Temple, TX
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev
Wow, your race report gave me such a warm and fuzzy feeling that I would like to sign up for that race and experience it myself... NOT!  Can't say I'm glad your HTFU kicked in, sounds like a miserable time all around, but huge pats on the back for finishing!!  Glad you finally warmed up!!!
2013-05-08 4:41 PM
in reply to: #4729925

User image

Veteran
622
500100
Roll Tide!!
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev

Wow!

I wanted to say "Bless your heart" while reading that but since you are a triathlete I'm glad you sucked it up Smile I'm very impressed.

An "easy" 8 minute pace in those conditions??? I am in awe. Seriously.

My favorite line was: "No one wanted any and no one looked too happy to be passed by a girl stuffing pretzels down her throat." I'm laughing out loud!! Reminded me of my first and only race so far and a lady pushing a jogging stroller and two 9 year olds passed me :/ I'm fairly competitive- I consider them my inspiration to speed up Smile



2013-05-23 12:01 PM
in reply to: #4729925

User image

Regular
100
100
Subject: RE: Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev
Hey Erin....you kicked booty. You beat my best 1/2 time for sure. I think you did incredibly considering the cold conditions. WOW, very impressive effort indeed!!
General Discussion-> Race Reports!
{postbutton}
General Discussion Race Reports! » Rev3 Knoxville - Half Rev Rss Feed