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BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Bryan, Texas
United States
Bryan Texas Utilities
65F / 18C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 26m 41s
Overall Rank = 52/196
Age Group = M45-49
Age Group Rank = 1/5
Pre-race routine:

Ate an awesome home-cooked meal of garlic shrimp, pasta, and bread and slept well the night before.

Woke up at my regular get-up time; 0500. Ate a bowl of oatmeal, and coffee and a Clif "Builders Bar" while driving the 1 hour to the site.

Arrived at the perfect time for parking and a good rack spot. Got marked, chipped, and set up TA. Made the first of the visits to the portacan. Walked all the ins & outs, and checked the swim course.

This was a repeat of my first-ever tri last year, so I was looking forward to see how much I had improved in a year.

Due to road construction, they had a completely different venue location; same lake, but the bike was longer and the run course had two significant hills, and was half road and half trail. The comparison wouldn't be exact, but time is time, regardless.
Event warmup:

This has been an area I haven't exploited in the past. Today I made a purposeful effort to stretch out and swim a good 100-150 yards prior to the race. I think it paid off.

Drank 12 ounces of G-ade Endurance and shot a gel about 20 minutes before the start.
Swim
  • 12m 11s
  • 547 yards
  • 02m 14s / 100 yards
Comments:

It was wetsuit legal and about half the folks wore them. I had brought mine, but decided not to wear it. I calculated that my slow swim time would be further burdened with pulling the suit off as there weren't going to be any strippers at this race.

My swim warm-up confirmed that the water really wasn't that cold once you got in and started swimming. The water temp was a non-factor.

Got off to poor start fooling with my watch because I had pushed the wrong button to start it. Then I had a leaking goggle, so I had to fix that. First 50 yards were slow.

My warm-up helped a bunch and I got into a comfortable rhythm quickly and because I was BOP, I did not touch another swimmer the entire time.

I sighted well and the swim was largely uneventful. No weaving back and forth or getting off course. I consider it a small victory when nobody from the next wave catches me. ;-)

Never got tired or winded. Last year, I backstroked half the swim, thrashed the other half, and staggered into T1 a mess. This year was a 100% improvement.


What would you do differently?:

Nothing.

I had predicted 12 minutes and I nailed it. This was a good swim for me, but you know you're slow when they could use a sundial to time you. Last in AG.

Time to seek professional help.
Transition 1
  • 01m 15s
Comments:

The timing mat was at the edge of the water and then about a 150 yard run from the water to TA. So this was all T1 time.

Oh, and running barefooted on the stubble of the freshly mowed weeds was fun, too. *wink*

No shirt, no socks, no problems. First in AG and fast compared to the field.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really, except run faster coming out of the water.
Bike
  • 48m 24s
  • 16.7 miles
  • 20.70 mile/hr
Comments:

I had driven the course the day before, so I knew of the hills, curves and corners. I felt like I could do well, and being a sprint, there would be no holding back.

We had excellent conditions; no wind, mild temp, light overcast clouds.

Started strong and kept it going. The hills were only a little harder than my normal training routes and was able to go after them aggressively.

Passed a lot of racers and was only passed by three younger guys that started in a later swim wave. Two of those were in full-aero kit; helmet, rear disc, and tri-spoke front.

Pushed so hard up the biggest hill that I threw up in my mouth at the top. Not much to spit out, just swallowed it back down and took a swig from the aero-bottle. Lovely.

***Rant on: Slower riders need to ride on the right-hand side of the road. Several times I had to go across the centerline of the road to pass people riding 2 and 3 abreast (socializing?). One young lady was casually riding on the left side of the centerline. Come on folks, pay attention; this is a race afterall! FWIW, I always announce my approach with a firm "LEFT". Rant off***

This wasn't quite a technical course, but there were a lot of gear changes and you had to stay focused to be on top of it. I hit my shifts for the most part and was in the optimal gear 99% of the time.

Took it easy around the corners and over the railroad crossings. Didn't want to chance any mistakes.

The country scenery was outstanding and combined with perfect conditions made for a very enjoyable ride. Just had a blast.

Pushed hard and steady the whole way. Drank about 12 ounces of GE from the aero-bottle, never ate the gel I carried.

I knew I had laid down a good ride and was pleased with the effort.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really.

Beat my goal by 3-1/2 minutes; had no problems, 1st in AG, so I was pleased.
Transition 2
  • 00m 33s
Comments:

Blazed through here. 2nd in AG by only 7 seconds, very fast compared to the field.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing today.

I can cut a few seconds by practicing getting out of the shoes while on the bike.
Run
  • 24m 16s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 07m 48s  min/mile
Comments:

I flew out of T2 and it took a half mile to get my breathing and running legs settled in; just in time for the first hill. Started passing folks one by one, and then it was time for the second and biggest hill.

At this point, I was fully into my rhythm and was able to chug up it at a good clip, passed a few more racers.

At about the half-way point, the course turned back into the park and it was dirt trails and gravel road. A little bit of mud-hole hopping and grass, but it wasn't really that bad. The fields had the extra advantage of clouds of micro-sized gnats that got in your mouth and eyes. What joy.

About a mile to go, a guy (42) overtook me, I stepped it up and clung to his heels until 200 yards from the finish. He got some separation, I couldn't quite hang with him and he beat me by 6 seconds. The only time I was passed.

I finished strong and there was little left in the gas tank. Short of puking and collapsing, I had pretty much run as hard as I could.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.

I ran my race and was steady the entire run. Had predicted 24 minutes and nailed it, too. 2nd in AG.
Post race
Warm down:

Got my finisher's medal, found my wife, and walked around. Ate a piece of pizza and drank a Gatorade. Chatted a few minutes with some new-found friends.

Checked the preliminary results, saw that I had beat my overall time goal and was pleased. Once they opened TA, I packed my stuff and we left.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of ichthyoidal gene.

Honestly, if I can improve my swimming to a modest 1:50 per 100, I could be a lot more competitive.

Compared to my performance last year, it was night and day difference. The results of a year of training and my first season of race experience was obvious. Last year = 99th of 199. This year = 52nd of 196.

Event comments:

Later in the afternoon, I checked the final results on the Internet. It was then that I found out I'd actually won my AG! I was shocked to say the least.

Because I hadn't paid attention and hung around, I missed out on my chance at receiving hardware and being anywhere near a podium. :-(

I have no illusions of grandeur. I had a good effort against a modest field and on April 29th I was the fastest 45-49 male that raced at the 2007 BTU Tri-O de Mayo. It happens. Cool.

This was a well run local race; nothing fancy, just a good, basic sprint with an awesome bike course.



Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-04-04 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:12:11 | 547 yards | 02m 14s / 100yards
Age Group: 5/5
Overall: 145/196
Performance: Good
Suit: DeSoto tri shorts
Course: A simple out 250 meters, round the bouy and back in. Well marked.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 72F / 22C Current:
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:15
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:48:24 | 16.7 miles | 20.70 mile/hr
Age Group: 1/5
Overall: 43/196
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: Country roads with rolling hills, lots of corners, some rough road and gravel, and 2 train crossings.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 89
Turns: Good Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:33
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:24:16 | 03.11 miles | 07m 48s  min/mile
Age Group: 2/5
Overall: 58/196
Performance: Good
Course: Half the course was country road with 2 big hills, the other half dirt trail and gravel road.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

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2007-04-30 10:00 PM

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Expert
944
50010010010010025
Waller County, TX
Subject: BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon


2007-04-30 10:09 PM
in reply to: #782720

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Expert
919
500100100100100
Subject: RE: BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon
Heck of a job out there, way to get 1st in your AG... you can post the stats as memento. Really nice job
2007-05-01 9:21 AM
in reply to: #782720

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Champion
10471
500050001001001001002525
Dallas, TX
Subject: RE: BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon
Let's see... cold water, vomit, gnats, people socilizing on the ride... you sure overcame a lot of adversity to win in your AG!

Great race report!

Yea, uuummm... I probably would have yelled at the people riding 2 abreast. It IS against the USAT rules.

Swimming... yep, you need to become a better swimmer. Too bad we don't live anywhere near each other. I would love to see your stroke and give you some pointers.

Oh well... slow on the swim but you kick their butts on the bike and run.. and that's where it matters!

Nice start to a full tri season ahead! WOO HOO!
2007-05-01 11:24 AM
in reply to: #782720

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Expert
1274
10001001002525
Houston, TX
Subject: RE: BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon
Great race Jim! After living out there and watching Kylie race this one twice I know that the bike course is pretty tough and you did awesome! Bummer about not picking up the hardware though! We'll see you soon I hope!
2007-05-02 8:03 PM
in reply to: #782720

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Master
2381
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Frisco, Texas
Subject: RE: BTU "TRI-O de Mayo"Triathlon

Great race, Jim.  Smok'in bike and run.  You had a 33" T2 and didn't get out of your shoes on the bike?!  That's pretty good. 

TJ

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