General Discussion Race Reports! » Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon Rss Feed  
Moderators: k9car363, alicefoeller Reply

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon - Triathlon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
New Hartford, Connecticut
United States
Hartford Marathon Foundation
74F / 23C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 48m 29s
Overall Rank = 155/200
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 16/18
Pre-race routine:

ate a plain bagel from the local grocery store the day before. nice and stale! shower to wake and drove to the race. was a bit noisy in the motel the night before as there was a wedding reception that stayed there.
Event warmup:

not much, just walked to the water.
Swim
  • 33m 46s
  • 1500 meters
  • 02m 15s / 100 meters
Comments:

water was beautiful. if i was a stronger swimmer i would have foregone the wetsuit. But i need the bouyancy. was a little crowded in the beginning as its a narrow starting channel, but nothing to worry about. i am a lot more comfortable swimming shoulder to shoulder with people. most of them pass me by the first bouy anyway.
What would you do differently?:

breath every 3rd stroke more frequently. pause less. swim a bit faster.
Transition 1
  • 07m 13s
Comments:

its a 1/4 mile to transition up a gravel road. i'm glad i read the reviews, so paying it forward, definintely WEAR SNEAKERS to the water. i took my wetsuit off at a picnic table by the water and got myself covered in sand to the point i felt like a piece of fried chicken. did a mix of walk/jog to t1. got my helmet on, grabbed a gel and a swig of water and lft T1. there was a very small staging area to hop on the bike so hard to really get going as it was a bit crowded
What would you do differently?:

run faster to t1. other than that, its just a slow trip in this one with the long walk and narrow exits
Bike
  • 1h 26m 26s
  • 24 miles
  • 16.66 mile/hr
Comments:

once on the open roads, in the sun, you could feel the heat really kicking up. it was like 100 degree heat blowing in my face. decided to take an extra salt tab because i knew i was sweating bullets.

i got screwed on the last big hill. somehow i got boxed in and nearly ran off the road at 7 mph. i caught the person in front of me and 2-3 passing me on my left and everyone was wobbly on their bike. i ran out of places to go and you cant really slow down at slow, so i ended up stopping and walking my bike about 50'. walking uphill with the bike cleats... something started to get sore in my groin muscles.
What would you do differently?:

anticipated the slow down and gone to the left and away from the mayhem. this cost me big time.
Transition 2
  • 01m 45s
Comments:

got myself to gether pretty good. ate another gel, popped another salt tab and took one for the road. swigged down some water. grabbed my sunglasses and race belt and took off
What would you do differently?:

i'd rather catch my breath and be ready for the run than save 5 seconds.
Run
  • 39m 21s
  • 5 kms
  • 07m 52s  min/km
Comments:

run was cut to 5k for good reason. it was hot as hell out there. i can see people being bummed that were either racing their first olympic or trying for a PR but for the sake of the volunteers, its just not fair to keep them out there as the temps soared to 95 and was really humid. my groin muscles were sore from the bike issue. i had a hard time getting going and staying going. managed the trail piece fine, which was a feat since i never run off road. but the temps were unbearable. tough to really get going, especialy with the injury
What would you do differently?:

try and hold off the pain. wasnt a good effort at all, just wanted to be done and over with at thsi point.
Post race
Warm down:

packed my sh*t and got out of there. i changed out of my tri suit in the wide open parking lot. for those of you who are offended, i'm sorry. for those that were intrigued, i'm married :)



What limited your ability to perform faster:

having to walk my bike and not dealing well with the strained muscles.

Event comments:

race was completely undermanned. not many volunteers or police on the bike course. The roads were largely in good shape but the first downhill that starts it out was terrible.




Last updated: 2015-07-22 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:33:46 | 1500 meters | 02m 15s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/18
Overall: 0/200
Performance: Below average
Suit: wetsuit
Course: clockwise triangle.
Start type: Wade Plus:
Water temp: 74F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Bad
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 07:13
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:26:26 | 24 miles | 16.66 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/18
Overall: 0/200
Performance: Below average
Wind: Little
Course: pretty much downhill/flat for the first 19 miles, then nearly all uphill the rest of the way. was choppy at first and had to duck from getting hit by a water bottle, but 23 of 24 miles were good conditions. kind of surprising given its the NE where roads get damaged by snow.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Bad
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:45
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:39:21 | 05 kms | 07m 52s  min/km
Age Group: 0/18
Overall: 0/200
Performance: Bad
Course: trail, hills, road
Keeping cool Bad Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 3
Good race? No
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Bad
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

{postbutton}
2015-07-22 2:10 PM


50
2525
Subject: Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon


2015-07-22 2:55 PM
in reply to: #5130434

User image

Member
2098
2000252525
Simsbury, Connecticut
Subject: RE: Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon
I volunteered that day. I was out on the run course waiting for you guys....they didn't tell us they were shortening the run any sooner than they told you! Having said that I think they scrambled pretty good to get the two water stations up and running (where there were NONE before the change).

Glad you were able to push though - it was indeed a bit TOASTY out there!!
2015-07-23 8:32 AM
in reply to: #5130434

Member
763
5001001002525
Subject: RE: Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon
Good job considering the heat. I really love that race. Sorry to hear you got boxed in on the last hill. I had the same issue a few years ago, but managed to wiggle out left just enough and got by - that hill is definitely tough and alot of folks are going *really* slow at the point. But all in all, congrats on a good race.
2015-07-23 12:59 PM
in reply to: LarchmontTri

User image

Master
4117
20002000100
Toronto
Bronze member
Subject: RE: Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Sounds like a tough day! Way to power through! 

General Discussion-> Race Reports!
{postbutton}
General Discussion Race Reports! » Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon Rss Feed  
RELATED POSTS

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Started by gabe.pitta
Views: 1731 Posts: 3

2009-08-24 8:04 PM stumfossil

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Started by Hudnick
Views: 1773 Posts: 1

2008-07-21 4:55 PM Hudnick

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Started by stumfossil
Views: 2130 Posts: 8

2007-08-15 12:28 PM isis54

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Started by steven_lohmann
Views: 1682 Posts: 2

2006-08-10 9:00 PM danielle860

Litchfield Hills Olympic Triathlon

Started by kaburns1214
Views: 1657 Posts: 1

2006-08-07 9:41 AM kaburns1214
RELATED ARTICLES
date : August 2, 2010
author : HerveB
comments : 8
I looked at the swim buoys and start thinking, "Man! How am I ever going to swim that? That looks like a very long distance from the bridge. I have never done it in one go." There's no turning back.
 
date : October 20, 2008
author : araqnid
comments : 0
After doing duathlons for the last couple of years, I decided to go for a triathlon. Starting with an Olympic-distance race perhaps wasn't wise, but it was fun (of a sort).
date : December 20, 2007
comments : 0
I struggled on the bike while climbing the hill portions of the course. I do fine on long straight rides but really have a tough time while hill climbing. Any advice or training tips?
 
date : January 1, 2006
author : acbadger
comments : 2
I’m terrified of biking hills and the triathlon I am registered for has several hills…on AND off road!! I’m willing to do whatever it takes to finish this triathlon. Any guidance?
date : January 24, 2005
author : Don Magie
comments : 0
A better bike is not the answer to meeting your performance goals. I mean if you gave Nike running shoes to a tortoise would he move any faster?
 
date : August 31, 2004
author : smeeko
comments : 0
How to fit in a running workout in 30 minutes or less for a busy lifestyle
date : August 30, 2004
author : Ron
comments : 0
A couch to olympic triathlon training program. These programs will take you from a walk/run program, to a sprint, then to an olympic.
 
date : August 29, 2004
author : Ron
comments : 2
Program outline of the 16 and 20 week olympic triathlon training plans.