Toyota Desert International Triathlon - TriathlonOlympic


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La Quinta, California
United States
Klien & Clark Sports, LLC
Total Time = 2h 03m 33s
Overall Rank = 23/569
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 5/61
Pre-race routine:

Coffee and breakfast (granola and fruit) at hotel. Drive to park, ride to transition. Set up, restrooms, swim. 3 Bloks w/caffeine.
Event warmup:

Swim 5-10 minutes. Kick, sprint, get used to cold (64ish) water.
Swim
  • 20m 2s
  • 1200 meters
  • 01m 40s / 100 meters
Comments:

Lots of contact at the start. Got blocked and stuck in traffic. Loosened up about 150-200m into race. Looked up and was right on line - yes! Felt swimmers on my feet. Warmup helped deal with cold water. Breathing was good. Technique was ok - some lapses in concentration. Breathing left every 2 strokes (no bi-lateral). Sight occasionally. Feet / calves cramped up a bit if I really worked on reach/rotate and had to back off.
What would you do differently?:

Take salt before start, get out a bit quicker. Overestimated pace of the chase pack.
Transition 1
  • 01m 19s
Comments:

Garmin wasn't turned on, so I hit the power button first. Crowded at mount, so I couldn't jump on bike. Had to stop and wait. Not enough speed to get into shoes. Trouble. Weaving. Almost lost a shoe. Had to stop again. This was in the bike time though.
What would you do differently?:

Put shoes on first at this race. A lot of congestion at bike mount made it tough to mount quickly to get in shoes before quick incline.
Bike
  • 1h 03m 30s
  • 24 miles
  • 22.68 mile/hr
Comments:

Rough road at start (after hill). Struggled with shoes. Left one came off pedal - holding on by a tippy toe. Finally got em in. Focus. Said sorry to Tri-Clubber I almost ran into while fiddling. And I'm off. Uh-oh...Rainy. Wet. Windy. Cold. Miserable. At least it was flat. Calf cramped up on backside of second loop (~mile 19). Took some Bloks. Never drank any water. Hammering. Wet roads. Passed by someone in my AG in last stretch of loop. First time I had seen anyone. Jockeyed back and forth with a lot of younger AGers from our wave. Penalty for drafting: rooster-tail spray in the face haha!
What would you do differently?:

Put bike shoes on in T1. Not enough room from late waves for flying mount and there's a hill shortly after the bike mount. Push a bit harder? Take some salt before race? Don't know why I was fighting cramps. Maybe lack of hydration? Either drink water or don't bring a full bottle along for the ride. Maybe just bring it half-full?
Transition 2
  • 01m 14s
Comments:

Crowded at dismount. Wet. Downhill. Didn't swing leg over for fear of stacking up in traffic. Just dismounted. Crowded run through transition. Barefoot. Rocky. Stubbed foot on someone's bike. Hat and shoes were soaking wet. Racked bike, took off helmet, put on hat and shoes shoes and ran out with my race belt. First time running barefoot in Newtons (with Superfeet). Can't feel feet. Legs feel surprisingly good.
What would you do differently?:

Cover shoes if chance of rain.
Run
  • 37m 28s
  • 6 miles
  • 06m 14s  min/mile
Comments:

Had some people in sight to run down after the bike. Caught them in first mile and started to pull out of the deadlegged state. Struggling with breathing. Slow down. Past first mile, check split: 6:15. Loosened up after 2 miles and second loop felt good.
What would you do differently?:

Run faster on the second loop. It was easier than the first, but I still emptied the tank down the stretch. There's more there, I just need to find it.
Post race
Warm down:

It was freezing. I went straight to transition and, luckily, my warmups were not soaked. Changed and loaded up backpack. Went back to watch other finishers. Tried to stay dry.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Rain. Lack of swim fitness (first time in wetsuit since Thanksgiving). Was hoping to break 2 hours, but the we course made for some slower bike times. I hit my 20 min swim split, broke 40 on the run by enough to absord transition times, but the bike was 3 minutes over where I wanted to be. About a mile per hour. I needed to be at 24 mph and I was under 23.

Turn on Garmin before heading to swim. Don't take full water bottle on bike if you're not going to drink it. Take some salt in the morning to help with cramps.

Event comments:

The rain put a damper on things. If there would have been no rain, it would have been perfect conditions. But it was cold and wet.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2010-02-16 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:20:02 | 1200 meters | 01m 40s / 100meters
Age Group: 8/61
Overall: 117/569
Performance:
Swim time includes run to transition. Was 19:20 out of the water. Didn't wear HRM (not waterproof).
Suit: Xterra Vendetta (Full)
Course: Left, left, left
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 64F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:19
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Bad
Biking
01:03:30 | 24 miles | 22.68 mile/hr
Age Group: 7/61
Overall: 56/569
Performance: Average
Garmin Edge 500 crashed while out on run. Lost lap / cadence data. Didn't wear HRM.
Wind: Some
Course: Flat. 2 miles out to big 10-mile rectangle. Two loops. 2 miles back to transition. Rainy. Good roads. Crowded course. I was in 2nd to last wave.
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills:
Race pace: Hard Drinks:
T2
Time: 01:14
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:37:28 | 06 miles | 06m 14s  min/mile
Age Group: 4/61
Overall: 51/569
Performance: Good
Was hitting 6:15 splits based on stopwatch and mile markers. Heard course was a bit short. More like 5.8. That makes sense. I usually run about 6:30 off the bike for a 10k.
Course: 2 clockwise loops around lake with a trail section first.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
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? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4