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Shamrock Duathlon - Duathlon


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Glastonbury, Connecticut
United States
Hartford Marathon Foundation
50F / 10C
Precipitation
Total Time = 1h 36m 30s
Overall Rank = 16/207
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 2/34
Pre-race routine:

Arrived at about 6:15 am, inflated the tires, starting stretching, hit the portoilet before the lines got long (they only had 3 - are you kidding me?). No food, no gu or anything, some water.
Event warmup:

Set up the transition area, was smart to bring a towel to stand on while I changed shoes as the ground was soaked and so would have been my socks. Ran about 1.5 miles for warm up, road the bike just for a minute or two to make sure I had it in the gear I wanted and everything was in working order. Then did about 6-8 strides to get the blood flowing in the legs with 10 minutes to go before the start.
Run
  • 17m 6s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 05m 30s  min/mile
Comments:

Seemed like several guys were itching to get on the front line for the start of the race which I'm very use to so a little extra push once the race started and I was clear and found myself in 3rd overall. Two guys went out like their pants were on fire so I just let them go. My game plan was to make this a bike-focus weekend, so I was aiming to run strong but not push too hard, and focus on really going hard on the bike leg.

During the warmups though I realized my legs felt like mush from Saturday and that going really hard on the bike might not happen. About 300 yards into the race either I moved up on the guys in front of me or they realized they were out too hard, and I found myself on the heels of 2nd place. At first I was going to just draft him, but I could hear him breathing hard already so I just went around him no problem. First place guy was about 20 yards ahead of me, and soon enough I was on his heels. We were only about 1/2 mile into the race and he and I were side by side. I couldn't help but notice he looked over at me a good 3 or 4 times, was kind of funny. At that point I rethought my gameplan of running conservatively and biking hard, and decided to just go for the run! What the hell, how often do I find myself with the opportunity to lead the race of a duathlon!

So we hit the hill, I moved into solo first place before the 1 mile mark, and just went for it. I wasn't going all out, but I was determined to lead all the way to T1, something I've never done before and wanted to experience that moment. I tried to hold back what I could while staying in front but conserving something for the bike and second run, but it was a tight rope as I could hear those in back of me.

Since it was a two-loop 5K, it was very cool to come through the spectator area in first, especially with the kids there cheering. I think they were surprised too. There were no mile markers so I had no clue how fast I was going, and although I was getting tired, I promised myself there was no way anyone would beat me into T1 at that point, even if I paid for it later. So I was able to hold the lead throughout and hit T1 in first, with some guy a few seconds back, very cool!
What would you do differently?:

Not much considering, I was extremely happy to be in first even if it wasn't the smartest move. It's been eons since I've been in first, so a great, fun experience. I'm glad I jumped at the opportunity and went for it! It was fun as hell and an awesome feeling! I love running behind the police cruiser!!
Transition 1
  • 01m 2s
Comments:

How they have T1 set up I thought sucked but it was what it was. I watched the race a couple years ago and saw everyone falling down when they tried to mount their bike on the road cause when you first hit the road, your on a hill. So I intentially kept running with the bike about 50 yds up the hill and then mounted, which worked out perfect.
What would you do differently?:

If I really wanted to shave time, I would have used my zip-ties on the running shoes. I wasn't too concerned about having a great transition so I took the time to untie my racing flats so they were ready for T2.
Bike
  • 59m 23s
  • 18.65 miles
  • 18.84 mile/hr
Comments:

My legs felt like mush from the start of the bike, surely the 5K was to blame but so was yesterday's long ride. I tried to maintain 20 plus mph on the flats where I could, but I definitely could have done better on the climbing. I could feel the hamstrings and quads all nice and tight and I remember laughing think, yep, this one's gonna hurt!
What would you do differently?:

Nothing considering. I didn't feel too fresh, and with my revised gameplan, I wanted to have something for the run so I could make up some time and catch some people ahead of me. After hitting T1 in first, it was a bit demotivating to have a fair number of riders pass me on the bike. But hey, they were riding well so good for them!
Transition 2
  • 01m
Comments:

I didn't enjoy running the bike down that hill with my bike shoes on. I took the time to tie my racing shoes back on and lost some time there. Was funny, a guy hit T2 right behind me, and mounted his bike next to mine. As I was tieing my first shoe, he took off running. Those zip-tie laces sure come in handy. I caught him running up that grassy hill though!
What would you do differently?:

Use the other laces to save time, not much else.
Run
  • 18m 2s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 05m 48s  min/mile
Comments:

As I was finishing the bike course, those already running were heading the opposite way on the other side of the road. I made a mental note to see what they were wearing and how far ahead of me they were so I could aim for catching them. Was good motivation.

The first 1/2 mile I caught a few people but had that brick feeling in the legs and felt like I wasn't going anywhere! Funny how that works. I reminded myself the legs would loosen up and to keep running hard. I immediately caught a few guys, then it was pretty spread out up ahead. As I finished the first loop, I was definitely feeling spent but I saw a group of about 5 guys running together maybe 200 yards up. I knew about 25 guys had passed me on the bike and I really wanted to at least finish in the top 20, so I pushed hard. They had a good lead on me, if I could catch them I knew it would be near the finish since I only had 1.5 miles to go, so I kept telling myself I was realing them in slowly but surely. With a few hundred yards to go, I caught them all. I heard a few say "good job", made the turn down the grassy hill, passed one more guy, and was all clear while running down the middle of the football field for the finish!
What would you do differently?:

Nothing.
Post race
Warm down:

None. My calve was killing me so I actually went to the massage table for a few minutes.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Saturday's workout I think. Other than that I felt pretty strong and the run splits were far better than I expected.

Event comments:

I might do this race again. Was a very good race, was very happy with how it went. They could use a few more volunteers though, but I know first hand how hard that can be. Police did a great job, level of competition was good. I think the turnout was about 275 I think they announced.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2007-05-04 12:00 AM
Running
00:17:06 | 03.11 miles | 05m 30s  min/mile
Age Group: 1/34
Overall: 1/207
Performance: Good
Course: A two-loop 5K, one hill. Otherwise fairly flat.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
T1
Time: 01:02
Overall: Average
Run with bike? Average
Jump on bike? Average
Getting up to speed and into shoes: Average
Biking
00:59:23 | 18.65 miles | 18.84 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/34
Overall: 65/207
Performance: Average
Wind: Some
Course: First portion of the course is pretty much all climbing, the second half is descending. Roads were wet and slippery, and although it didn't rain during the run, it started raining during the bike, but not too bad, just off and on.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Below average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:00
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:18:02 | 03.11 miles | 05m 48s  min/mile
Age Group: 1/34
Overall: 1/207
Performance: Good
Course: Same two-loop course.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
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? No
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 3

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2007-05-20 10:28 AM

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Regular
57
2525
Bristol, CT
Subject: Shamrock Duathlon


2007-05-20 10:50 AM
in reply to: #808419

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Master
1265
10001001002525
CT
Subject: RE: Shamrock Duathlon
Awesome race Jay? I was there too—but you were WAAAAY ahead of me .

Good work!
2007-05-21 11:19 AM
in reply to: #808419

Expert
842
50010010010025
Subject: RE: Shamrock Duathlon

Hey Jay,

Mark Livingston here.  I saw you at the race but did not get a chance to say hello.  You ended up passing me on the second 5k as were heading up that last hill before turning for the finish.  I had nothing left so there was no way I was staying with you...very nice job.

Mark

2007-05-21 3:33 PM
in reply to: #808419

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Expert
931
50010010010010025
Smyrna, GA
Subject: RE: Shamrock Duathlon
Wow, Speedy - that's one heck of a race!!!  Great job
2007-05-23 7:01 AM
in reply to: #808419

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Expert
1160
10001002525
Avon, CT
Subject: RE: Shamrock Duathlon
Congratulations on a great race- those were some very sick 5K's you ran!
2007-05-23 12:28 PM
in reply to: #808419

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Veteran
104
100
Downers Grove
Subject: RE: Shamrock Duathlon
Great race, and excellent job on reeling those in at the end!


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