I Love the Tavern - TriathlonSprint


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Midlothian, Virginia
United States
Richmond Multisports
70F / 21C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 47m 33s
Overall Rank = 151/
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Got there an hour early and set up my transition area. Met Jonah Holland, who shares my last name, since she was set up right next to me. My rack number put me all the way back in the corner of the transition area. Very easy to find which has been a problem for me in the past..
Event warmup:

A nice relaxing walk back to the car because I left my sunglasses. Jogged part of the way back to loosen up. Stretched some while we waited to swim and then waited some more.
Swim
  • 20m 32s
  • 500 meters
  • 04m 07s / 100 meters
Comments:

Current was definitely stronger than the practice swim last Friday and way faster than last year. I was in the second wave since I am an old guy (over 40). Started swimming to the start line buoy when they call 1 minute til start. When they called 10 seconds I was still not there so I turned upriver and started my freestyle. Since I wasn't in the starting pack I didn't get jostled around at all. It was agonizingly slow to make progress to the next buoy. Started getting passed by females from the next wave and I tried to draft but they were too fast. When I finally got to the turn buoy there was a pile up like others have described but somehow I managed to get around. Then it was downhill to the exit dock. I was concerned about overshooting the dock due to the current but I did just fine. My wife told me later that many people found the swim too challenging to complete and I can believe it.
What would you do differently?:

More OWS practice. Train to become stroger and more efficent.
Transition 1
  • 01m 17s
Comments:

My wife distracted me in T1. Afraid I would miss something and hesitated some. Overall TI went well.
What would you do differently?:

Ask wife to hold her wild cheering until I am leaving T1.
Bike
  • 58m 58s
  • 18.8 miles
  • 19.13 mile/hr
Comments:

Felt really good but it took me awhile to slow down my breathing from the torturous swim. I was passing alot of guys from wave 1 and 2 and also some of those mean ladies who passed me in the river and wouldn't slow down so I could draft. I passed my new friend Jonah (I didn't know she was such a good swimmer) and wished her well. When I encountered the first hill I thought it was the big one and slowed up too much. The real hill was tough but I got through it. From that point on until the end there was a group of us that kept passing each other and getting passed by each other. That help motivate me to keep pushing.
What would you do differently?:

More hill work before race.
Transition 2
  • 00m 59s
Comments:

First T2 under 1 minute!!! Everything went well.
What would you do differently?:

Hold race belt in mouth while putting on running shoes and then put it on while exiting TA.
Run
  • 25m 49s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 08m 18s  min/mile
Comments:

I felt good going into the run. Okay, my legs felt weak like normal after biking hard for 18.8 miles. I was catching some of the people that had been ahead of me on the bike and I wasn't even at full stride yet. Someone came up behind me and so I moved to the right side of the trail to let them pass. The next thing I know my ankle is rolling under and I am following with a graceful shoulder roll flat onto my back. Whatever I came down on I never saw it. A few people asked me if I was okay for the second or two that I lay there. Don't remember if I said anything. I got up and put weight on my ankle and, thank God, it wasn't to bad. I was able to limp/run down the trail. As I was limping along I realized that because I was wearing my sunglasses I could not see the details of the trail very well which probably contributed to my fall. It took them off and everything was much clearer. After about 5 minutes my ankle started feeling better and I was able to run a more normal albeit slower stride. After the halfway point I was actaully feeling very good and picked up the pace some. I had no problem on the trail on the way back and new I would be able to finish strong. At the very end where we exited the swim from Hell someone came up very fast behind me and was able to hold them off until the finish with a good sprint through the chute.
What would you do differently?:

Do not wear sunglasses when trail running. Stay in the middle of the trail where there are less trip hazards.
Post race
Warm down:

Gatorade, cookies, banana. Hugs from my 7 year old and wife. Went to the ambulance and got an ice pack. Then I grabbed some BBQ and another Gatorade and chilled at the RTC tent and watch peolple come in.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Strong current. Angle injury. Except for the swim I still performed better than last year.

Event comments:

Start delayed to shorten course. Good call.
This is still my favorite race. I learned some new lessons and hopefully next year will be even better.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2009-04-28 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:20:32 | 500 meters | 04m 07s / 100meters
Age Group: 20/
Overall: 144/
Performance: Below average
Suit:
Course: Course was supposed to be a 750m river swim, 450m up-river and 300m down-river, but the current was too strong so the race director shortened it to 450 or so. 4 waves, 3 minutes apart
Start type: Deep Water Plus:
Water temp: 85F / 29C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Below average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:17
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
00:58:58 | 18.8 miles | 19.13 mile/hr
Age Group: 22/
Overall: 144/
Performance: Average
Wind: Little
Course: The 18.8 mile bike is on rural roads heading west Powhatan. After you get out a ways, very nice and lowly populated, with 2 gradual climbs, one of which is very challenging. U-turn at the midway point on the course then fly back down to main road and back to start line.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:59
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:25:49 | 03.11 miles | 08m 18s  min/mile
Age Group: 20/
Overall: 144/
Performance: Below average
Course: The run is basically flat 5k on shady trails through Robious Landing Park along the James River. You run a small portion in the adjoining neighborhood. There are a lot of turns in the trail which makes this course so much fun!
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5