Midwest Meltdown Triathlon - Long Course - Triathlon


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Paola, Kansas
United States
Midwest Meltdown Triathlon
75F / 24C
Total Time = 2h 00m 53s
Overall Rank = 14/73
Age Group = M45-49
Age Group Rank = 3/9
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 4:30, started coffee brew, took wake up shower, woke up my 13 y/o daughter, mounted bike, filled hydration bottles, prepared coffee, headed out door. As a change I decided to have Peanut Butter Pop Tarts as my pre-race breakfast (Yanti Inspired of course).

The race was about 40 minutes south and parking was nice and close to transition, perk of the small local race.
Event warmup:

My daughter stayed in the car to get a little more shuteye while I set up my transition. I also took my bike to the mechanics as the front derailer needed some adjusting. Saw the usual suspects and chatted for a while. Took a small jog back to the car to wake up kid, then headed down to beach.
Swim
  • 26m 9s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 35s / 100 yards
Comments:

Lined up near front row. Spotted the fast guys so I'd know who to follow. Was hoping to draft. Horn blows and the race was on. Within a minute or so I was already a few yards back from the fast guys. No draft for me. Scott and I are usually seconds from each other but that' usually with wetsuits. This was a non-wetsuit race. I felt a little more taxed in the first lap than I normally do. Second lap I felt OK. Hit the slower first wave swimmers coming back towards the beach on the first lap. When I rounded the bouy near the start arae I oculd see the sprint wave standing there waiting for the start. I was hoping I'd get out there a bit before they started. Luckily they started a few minutes after I passed as I don't think I got passed on the 2nd lap.

I think sighting was O.K. and I didn't run into any floaters or backstrokers. A 26 minute swim, not steller but not too slow. Swimming twice and week, I can't expect much more.
What would you do differently?:

Nada
Transition 1
  • 01m 7s
Comments:

I was pretty close to the bike exit. The transition area is not that big. Either way, a T1 time like this is fast for me. This might be my fastest T1 ever.
What would you do differently?:

Nada
Bike
  • 53m 37s
  • 20.84 miles
  • 23.32 mile/hr
Comments:

I felt OK once on the bike. Just put my head down and went to work. $ laps of a 5.2 mile loop is pretty boring. With such a loop and averaging 23 mph, you end up saying "on your left" quite a few times, especially near the bike exit/entrance near transition. The overall winner averaged 26.5 mph so I could imagine how frustrating it could be coming up on traffic with 3 bikes wide etc. when you're trying to WIN the race.

On the first lap, yellow disk wheel guy passed me on the minor climb sections. I told him "cool wheel", he told me it was his own garage handywork. At the time I didn't know what AG he was in. He stayed in my sights for all 4 laps. At one point I got within 10 yards from him but he was usually 20-30 yards ahead of me, maybe up to 50 yards at one point.

I probably went out a little harder on the bike than I should have but I just love to ride fast. I may never change the way I race. Bike hard, tank a little on the run. If I ever become a serious contender for OA awards maybe I'll put some more thought into it.
What would you do differently?:

On this day NADA. I hope to one day be able to have an easy ride where I'm averaging 23 mph. So one day my bike and overall fitness will be such that I can ride 23 mph at 85-90% effort, then run sub 7 minute miles. Yeah, that's it.....
Transition 2
  • 00m 48s
Comments:

This was probably my fastest T2. I was only about 20 yards from the bike/run exit, a few folks went under 30 seconds. I run with my bike shoes on so I can't expect steller T2 times anyhow.
What would you do differently?:

Learn to remove feet from shoes?
Run
  • 39m 12s
  • 5.21 miles
  • 07m 31s  min/mile
Comments:

Felt like I normally do coming off the bike. Felt better than last week though. Heading out of transition I could see yellow disk wheel guy about 30 yards ahead of me. After a few minutes I could tell I was gaining on him. Took water at the mile 1 marker, drank half, poured the other half over my head as it was starting to get warm. I had a gatorade/water mixture on the bike and I think I hydrated well during the bike portion.

I caught disk wheel guy and another guy a couple minutes after the first aid station. Then I noticed they were both in their 30's so my main competition was well ahead of me and I knew at least two of them WOULD be. So for the rest of the run I just tried to hold a respectable pace, hoping to muster up a strong finish. As I got to within a half mile of the finish I WAS able to step up the pace a little so I'm pretty sure the last half mile wa my fastest of the day, but not a pace that was groundbreaking given my total time over 5 miles.
What would you do differently?:

Nada, I paced the run well to coincide with my current running ability. Averaging 10-12 miles per week will not yeild very solid run times at this distance.
Post race
Warm down:

Grabbed some water,drank a coke, ate a banana, a cookie. Talked with friends for a bit. I wasn't craving a beer but drank the one that was handed to me by one of my friends.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Proper training and diet. This type of performance is what the mid 40's athlete can expect with random butsomewhat solid s/b/r training.

Event comments:

This was the 2nd race put on by the new owner, Elite Cycling. The same RD has done it the last 4-5 year or so and everything was organixed and on time. There was a little mshap on the awards (they announced 1st to 3rd for one of the women's races but they had to correct it. So 3rd pace gile had to give back her prize a few minutes later, D'oh! Also, for the 2nd race in a row, a drawing winner crossed the finish line just as they were announced as a winner. They had some drawings post race for prizes etc. but you had to be present to win. So two weeks in a row the finisher heard their name called as they crossed the line but it wasn't to recognize them for finishing, it was for the drawing! That's my kind of finish. My friend Kaylee won those new Garmin pedals with the sensor (don't remember what it's called).


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Last updated: 2013-05-24 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:26:09 | 1640 yards | 01m 35s / 100yards
Age Group: 3/9
Overall: 15/73
Performance: Average
Suit: Zoot 1-piece Tri Suit
Course: Two lap swim. 50m swim in shallow section parallel to beach between each lap.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 78F / 26C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 01:07
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike:
Jump on bike:
Getting up to speed:
Biking
00:53:37 | 20.84 miles | 23.32 mile/hr
Age Group: 3/9
Overall: 11/73
Performance: Good
Wind: Little
Course: Four laps on paved roads around Lake Miola. Pretty flat, a couple spots of incline but only 1-2% grade for a short distance.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Cornering:
Gear changes: Hills:
Race pace: Drinks:
T2
Time: 00:48
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike
Racking bike
Shoe and helmet removal
Running
00:39:12 | 05.21 miles | 07m 31s  min/mile
Age Group: 4/9
Overall: 18/73
Performance: Good
Course: One lap around the lake, same as the bike loop.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
Physical exertion [1-5]
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] 4