Breath of Life Ventura Triathlon - Olympic Course - TriathlonOlympic


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Ventura, California
United States
Breath of Life Ventura
64F / 18C
Overcast
Total Time = 2h 40m 31s
Overall Rank = 260/422
Age Group = M 35-39
Age Group Rank = 44/53
Pre-race routine:

Strangest tri yet, for reasons almost entirely unrelated to the event itself. See the run section for that.

The pre-race routine was pretty standard. Up early, breakfast of raisin bran and banana. In the car early, and arrived with plenty of time to spare. The family, including the very pregnant wife stayed home. I missed them of course, but it's wouldn't have been much fun for them.
Event warmup:

As usual, no real warm up. Just got in the water and made sure the wetsuit was on right and I was used to the water temp.

It was near perfect conditions. Water was fine. It was cool and calm throughout the race. Some sun would have been nice, but it was just beautiful.
Swim
  • 24m 39s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 30s / 100 yards
Comments:

Nice little swim. Told myself to just keep it smooth, and did. There was a pretty decent southwards current, and I managed to get off course a bit, but not terrible. Quickly found space and just kept swimming. Could have gone much further at same pace. I guess I can continue to sort of cruise on this event. The bike and run are still holding me back comparatively.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe sight a bit better. Otherwise, nada.
Transition 1
  • 00m
Comments:

Transition was pretty smooth. There was a long run up across the beach, and I was happy to have my water bottle to rinse the feet. Had the extra step of checking the cell phone- my wife is 9 months pregnant and I was "on call." Some dude blocked my bike with his stuff, but besides that it was pretty smooth.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing really. Just need practice. I wish they would have had splits for T1 and T2. I think they were all lumped into the bike split.
Bike
  • 1h 22m
  • 24.85 miles
  • 18.18 mile/hr
Comments:

Biking is still my limiter, despite some emphasis in training. When it comes down to it, it's a lack of muscles strength. Sure, I got tired with time, but I just don't have the power I need. Other than that, I was happy with the effort, if not necessarily the results. I still get worked on this, and passing folks is the exception.
What would you do differently?:

I need focused, hard training here. No more going through the motions and getting miles in.

I also don't need the second water bottle. I never get through even one at this distance. The one GU was just right.
Transition 2
  • 00m
Comments:

Pretty seamless. Fumbled getting one my shoes on. Also, had to check the cell phone again. Actually did it will jogging onto the beginning of the course and almost went the wrong way doing so. Wouldn't notice it until later, but I missed my pocket and dropped my phone on the strand.
What would you do differently?:

Not much. Pretty happy with this, aside from the cell phone thing.
Run
  • 53m 51s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 08m 40s  min/mile
Comments:

So, where do I start?

I was really disappointed with both the result and my effort level here. I think I could have done a couple minutes better had the following strangeness not occurred:

1. As I mentioned, I dropped my phone at the get go (I got it back, thankfully at the end!). I noticed it a couple minutes later, and predictably stressed out about it. I didn't care about the phone, but was pretty sure that Murphy's law would apply, and my wife would call me frantically in labor on the way to the hospital. Rational? No. But very me. Result? I took the pace out way too fast trying to "hurry." Rational? Same answers.

2. My nose stopped working. Yes, it stopped working. Maybe I'm unique or need some medical intervention here, but my nose generally works one nostril at a time. For reasons I don't understand, my body decides to "switch" nostrils every few hours. It did so just after the first half mile. And it went from a clear nostril, to a completely blocked one. Result? Almost completely unable to breath through my nose. Total distraction and a meaningful impact on my performance. Just can't mouth breath comfortably.

That, combined with my irrationally fast pace amounted to a very quick first lap, and a near collapse on lap two. Oh, and speaking of lap two, I was so bent out of shape, I didn't push as hard as I should. I was medium gassed from the bike, but no excuses for my lapses, and too frequent 20 second walk breaks.
What would you do differently?:

Not race with a wife's due date in a week. Get a better nose. Stop being such a nancy. The list goes on.
Post race
Warm down:

Just wondered around and grabbed some pizza, a Pom juice and a long awaited beer.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

My training has been too "minutes oriented" the last couple months. I've been taking it for granted that if I put in the time, I'd improve. We'll, not that much. Better than the Toyota Desert tri, if only because I got the same time with slightly more distance, but I really wanted to shave another 5 minutes off and didn't. More intensity, please.

Event comments:

Great race. Good organization, lots of folks, good food, yummy beer (though longish lines). Would definitely do again.




Last updated: 2009-05-31 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:24:39 | 1640 yards | 01m 30s / 100yards
Age Group: 29/53
Overall: 0/422
Performance: Good
Suit: Zoot Zenith
Course: Straight out to buoy, 2 lefts, and back to shore.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 64F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 00:00
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:22:00 | 24.85 miles | 18.18 mile/hr
Age Group: 45/53
Overall: 0/422
Performance: Below average
I think both T1 and T2 are built into this time.
Wind: Some
Course: An out and back, with two loops at the end. Just about pancake flat.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 00:00
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:53:51 | 06.21 miles | 08m 40s  min/mile
Age Group: 41/53
Overall: 0/422
Performance: Bad
Course: Out and back twice on the strand. Pretty flat and smooth.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 2
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Ok
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] 5