Spirit of Racine - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


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Racine, Wisconsin
United States
http://www.hfpracing.com
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 15m 45s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = Athena
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Woke up in the hotel room... got all my stuff together, checked out, drove to transition, where my bike was already parked... (that was nice) and set up... general walking around, til it was time to go over to the swim start... Ate a Gu and drank a Gatorade while milling around...
Event warmup:

There was no warm up really... the way I see it, I need to conserve every last bit of energy for the actual event... no sense wasting it on a warmup. Hopefully as my endurance increases this will change... but for now... I just tried to stand as still as possible, so as to use as little energy as possible! ;)
Swim
  • 40m 12s
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 54s / 100 yards
Comments:

Swimming out to the buoy was difficult... in fact, I thought I'd never get there... swim swim swim... nope, still no closer... swim swim swim...maybe a bit closer now...A slow process... Once we turned right at the first buoy, things picked up a bit, as we were no longer swimming directly against the current. The swim time includes the sandy run from the shore to T1, which apparently took me 3 minutes, because my watch said I exited the water at 37.xx.
What would you do differently?:

I swallowed about a gallon of Lake Michigan. Will try not to do that next time. Sighting was better this time... after last week's terrible OWS in Crystal Lake... where I couldn't see a thing to save my life... this seemed to go a bit smoother. Although the waves made it more interesting...

Not my best swim, but considering the circumstances, not bad, either.
Transition 1
  • 03m 14s
Comments:

Leisurely T1. Decided I was going to take whatever time I needed because it was a long race and I wanted to make sure I got everything the way I wanted it...56 miles is a long way to go on the bike with your sock all bunched up or something. In an Olympic or Sprint I'd just go...but for something like this, I wanted to make sure all was well.
What would you do differently?:

Learn how to do the above FASTER!
Bike
  • 2h 54m 38s
  • 56 miles
  • 19.24 mile/hr
Comments:

As I was riding my bike... and thinking ahead to the run.... I was trying to decide if I should hold something back on the bike FOR the run, or if I should just hammer the bike and hang on for the run... I ultimately decided to just hammer. Whatever I'd be saving in the tank would do me more good on the bike than the run anyway. Those of you who know me know I am not much of a land mammal. Am improving, but still am pretty slow on land. My efforts were better used on the bike.

Nutritionally, I stuck fastidiously to my plan of an early Powerbar... 15 minutes in, and then a Gu every 40 minutes after that... drank all my Gatorade, and had water as needed. I never felt sick or hungry.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. Hammer harder... maybe? I don't know... At this point in my triathlon "career" saving something for the run just isn't that important. The run is going to blow no matter what I do. Am working to change that... and it's coming along... but it's a slow process.
Transition 2
  • 02m 34s
Comments:

I thought this was faster than it was. Again, I wasn't rushing through transition because I wanted to be sure I remembered everything and got myself all situated.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe learn how to pee on the bike... I don't know. Had to stop in T2 to pee. Was planning to stop on the bike, but never found a good spot. Rode it into T2 with a FULL bladder after guzzling Gatorade for almost 3 hours.

I just can't imagine the chafing involved with peeing in my own shorts. Ugh.
Run
  • 2h 35m 5s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 11m 50s  min/mile
Comments:

Well, this was a Half Marathon PR for me, by about 3 minutes. Although I've only done one other Half Marathon, and it was very very hilly. I tried a run/walk plan for this event... Running til I felt like walking... not very scientific, and probably not even a PLAN, really. But that was the best way for me to get through it. My knee started to protest around mile 8-9...

Am happy my average was under 12 minute miles, though... (!!)
What would you do differently?:

Keep working my run. Slowly getting better. Slowly.

Maybe try to run more instead of walking so much.
Post race
Warm down:

Wander around in a daze... saw Chris and his father... saw a couple of my other friends... ate some food... waded in Lake Michigan.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Genetics. I was just not created to move one foot in front of the other in a quick efficient fashion. Am training to change that. But it's a slow process.

Event comments:

Very well organized, very fun, lots of drink stations, a running route where you could see your friends SEVERAL times... it was great. I'm generally happy with my performance, and the run was a Half Marathon PR. Not fast, but at least I'm not getting slower.

Great to see Cindy and Mark and Chris and his Dad and I think Autumn yelled WHIZZZZZZZZZZZZ while we were running past each other!

A long day, but FUN.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2006-03-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:40:12 | 2112 yards | 01m 54s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Suit: QR Longjohn
Course: Out against the waves to buoy #1, then a right turn, and straight across to buoy #2... then another right turn back to the shore.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 68F / 20C Current: Medium
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Good Navigation: Good
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 03:14
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
02:54:38 | 56 miles | 19.24 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Flat... through some rural areas... Through town... I honestly don't remember much of it! Some of the roads were smooth, others were rough and with holes...
Road: Rough Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:34
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:35:05 | 13.1 miles | 11m 50s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Average
Course: Out and back... TWICE... I saw everyone I knew several times... that was fun. Flat as a pancake. Also fun.
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] 5