Maumee Bay Triathlon - Olympic Distance - TriathlonOlympic


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Oregon, Ohio
United States
HFP Racing
Sunny
Total Time = 3h 00m 10s
Overall Rank = 177/215
Age Group = 40-44
Age Group Rank = 19/20
Pre-race routine:

Same as usual. Up at 5:45 w/ iced tea and quinoa waffles w/ PB. 20 min drive to the race site, then registration and warmup. Remembered the inhaler this time.
Event warmup:

5 min run, 10 min swim
Swim
  • 30m 14s
  • 1640 yards
  • 01m 50s / 100 yards
Comments:

Good news: stayed in the washing machine, didn't get freaked out, sighting was better.
Bad news: didn't push nearly hard enough. I was dogging it.
What would you do differently?:

Swim harder.
Transition 1
  • 03m 49s
Comments:

Got arms out and my goggles and swim cap off and stuck into the suit arm just fine, but had trouble getting my legs free. Took too long to put on the jersey. Couldn't figure out which side of my socks was up.

20/20 AG in T1, and I earned every second.
What would you do differently?:

My T1 times will continue to be bad until I start training transitions. Pure and simple. Still need a tri top. Mark the socks or go without. Also find a better headband solution than a bandanna, it takes too long.
Bike
  • 1h 17m 15s
  • 24.85 miles
  • 19.30 mile/hr
Comments:

This is where I knew things weren't going well. At some point I realized I wasn't racing so much as enduring. I just didn't have it in me to kick into high gear; admittedly I'm better on hills than flats, but I should have done 20-21mph easy.

Had to pee on second lap, trying to do that on the bike during a race turned out to be harder than I thought.
What would you do differently?:

Mostly a motivational issue, see below. Ride itself was OK, just not nearly aggressive enough.
Transition 2
  • 01m 49s
Comments:

18/20 AG in T2. Had problems re-racking the bike; I should have tossed my wetsuit to the side instead of putting it over the rack.
What would you do differently?:

Practice
Run
  • 1h 07m 1s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 10m 47s  min/mile
Comments:

And this is where it all fell apart. For starters, I came out of the bike with gut cramps and felt an definite need for the port-a-johns (never done that before in a race), where it turned out to be a false alarm.

Then, I had a knee problem going in, but I probably could have pushed through it if I'd had the proper attitude. I just wanted to finish without exacerbating an injury at this point, so stopped at regular intervals to walk. My form got sloppy, and just before the turnaround my kneecap started mistracking and something went POP. I was even slower after that.
What would you do differently?:

Training and motivation. See below. Also, I need to build more heat tolerance.
Post race
Warm down:

Walk, stretch, food, 15m massage

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Inadequate training -- in the long term, being unprepared for this distance; in the short term, overtraining.


Event comments:

I got exactly the race I deserved for my choices. I'm OK with that in the larger sense even though I'm not happy with my performance. This isn't whining, it's self-criticism, which I need to do in order to not make the same mistakes.

I knew things were going wrong the week before the race. I couldn't sleep and my base HR was way up, but I decided to push through anyway. By Wednesday I was fatigued to the point where I quit on a group ride, and every run was spiritless. I just didn't want to be out there.

I've done three races in three weeks -- an Oly-ish distance KBR, a sprint, and this Oly -- and I think it was too much for my experience level. The last sprint was great, but I should have waited a bit before the next race. I exceeded my physical and tolerance, and cut back on running time to recover, which was probably the worst choice. I probably could have pushed harder physically, but I was past caring. I suppose it's a refreshing change to reach my mental limits before my physical ones.

Every race I've done before this, I was excited to be there. Nervous sometimes, yes, and questioning why I do it, but still excited. This one, not so much. Nobody was there to see me. If it weren't for my stubborn belief that the only two ways to end a race are at the finish line or in an ambulance, I might have DNF'd, and ashamed to admit that.

Ironically enough I think the course was too easy and that contributed to the problem; I knew I could dog it and finish anyway. I do much better with hilly races. I'm a good climber -- I love blowing past people on fast bikes every time there's a decent grade -- and it demands intensity that gets me motivated for the rest of the race.

Oh well, live and learn. I'm taking July off from racing, and instead focusing on making my training more consistent, and resetting my attitude.




Last updated: 2010-03-21 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:30:14 | 1640 yards | 01m 50s / 100yards
Age Group: 13/20
Overall: 121/215
Performance: Below average
Suit: Vortex 3 full
Course: Two laps around buoys in a small man-made lake
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 73F / 23C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Average
Waves: Navigation: Good
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 03:49
Performance: Bad
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: No
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed:
Biking
01:17:15 | 24.85 miles | 19.30 mile/hr
Age Group: 15/20
Overall: 148/215
Performance: Bad
Wind: Some
Course: Flat, two loops.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 89
Turns: Below average Cornering: Below average
Gear changes: Good Hills:
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Too much
T2
Time: 01:49
Overall: Below average
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Bad
Shoe and helmet removal Below average
Running
01:07:01 | 06.21 miles | 10m 47s  min/mile
Age Group: 20/20
Overall: 199/215
Performance: Bad
Course: Flat, in the sun
Keeping cool Below average Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 1
Physical exertion [1-5] 2
Good race? No
Evaluation
Course challenge Too easy
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 2