Square Lake Triathlon - Long Course - Triathlon1/2 Ironman


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Stillwater, Minnesota
United States
Front Runner
84F / 29C
Sunny
Total Time = 6h 20m
Overall Rank = /
Age Group =
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

"rolled" ITB and quads. Ate 2 bananas. Stretched. Forgot my bottle of poweraid, so stopped at convenience store (complete with bullet proof glass for the clerks) and got more power aid and squeeze bottles. Set up bike in transition and got marked. Kevin from Gear West gave me CO2 and tire levers for wearing my Gear West tri suit. Nice way to start. Fortunately, I didn't need them on the course.
Event warmup:

Jogged with my bike from the overflow lot. Swam about 50 yards in the lake.
Swim
  • 33m
  • 2112 yards
  • 01m 34s / 100 yards
Comments:

That lake is super nice and it was so calm. Everything was great until .6 miles into it and I notice the swimmer in front of me had a timing chip and it occurred to me I never picked mine up. Other than that, I cannot say I've EVER had a better swim. I was planning on 40 minutes. Awesome!
What would you do differently?:

Pick up my timing chip. (I didn't time the transitions so built the time into the legs).
Transition 1
  • 00m
Bike
  • 3h 35m
  • 54 miles
  • 15.07 mile/hr
Comments:

I was taking it easy in part because I was worried about my ITBS and part because I didn't have a chip. Had to do emergency pit stop, there isn't even a porta-potty at the water bottle exchange. I think about 80 people passed me and I passed 6. It was nice, though, I felt like I was on a bike tour. If I ever felt like I was working too hard, I down shifted. I stopped to help a guy, but his bike was unfixable just with tools. Bummer! Looked like a fair number of mechanical problems out there.
What would you do differently?:

Start distance biking sooner and stick with it throughout season to avoid ITBS from ramping up. Hit the potta potty b4 the bike even if I don't think I need to.
Transition 2
  • 00m
Comments:

Took my time.
Run
  • 2h 20m
  • 13.2 miles
  • 10m 37s  min/mile
Comments:

Found someone who wanted to run together early on. Walked all water stops, but otherwise ran. Wife and kids showed up at water stop #9 and felt I should be running and not walking. Lots of fun BSing and cheering on other runners. Love the pace of a half iron. More social and friendly. I cannot get enough air to do any of that in a shorter race due to pace and asthma. ITB didn't hurt until mile 10. By then, my thighs were spassing out so it didn't matter much.
What would you do differently?:

Not start out sub 8 when I know I'll be lucky to run 10 minute miles. More strength training for leg stability and just like the bike, don't play catch up late in the season and end up with ITBS. Learn to drink HEED without swallowing a bunch of air. I had to belch each time after the water stop.
Post race
Warm down:

Get water. Ate hot dog when nausea settled down. Waded into water and swam for a couple of minutes. Realized I had a saddle sore when the cold water hit it. Ouch!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Heat. Insufficient based earlier in season. Lack of motivation w/o timing chip.

Event comments:

Communication is nearly non-existent pre-race. Now that I know the routine, I might do the race again. Pretty challenging for a 1st time half iron, but I learned a lot and everyone was so nice.


Profile Album


Last updated: 2011-09-12 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:33:00 | 2112 yards | 01m 34s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Suit: Profile Bionic
Course: Slim triangle, 2 laps.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 00:00
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
03:35:00 | 54 miles | 15.07 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Two loops. Pretty challenging.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Below average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:00
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
02:20:00 | 13.2 miles | 10m 37s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Good
Course: Out and back. Lots of hills. No shade. Hot, hot, hot! Nice volunteers.
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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:
Race evaluation [1-5] 4