Hagg Lake Triathlon - Olympic Distance - DuathlonStandard

wore footpod this time, was a good tool for pacing although the hills threw it off
still not able to get much from aid stations
running form fell apart a couple times on the hills

still feel mentally hitting the wall some in terms of pushing pace more

first race with shoes tied onto bike - really liked this tactic, was able to push up initial hill well, no problem getting into shoes - practice paid off well here

need to re-evaluate racking on bike - racked by saddle and helmet fell off again, one of the helmet wings popped off so I tossed off the other, that lost a few seconds. Might try next time to rack by handlebars or maybe adjust stuff bag to help make more stable
Also need to think about mounting on bike - feels like in races have to stop cold and mount bike, but would love to get a running start

overall felt good about ride - think not having done course before made me a little gun shy on first loop, felt stronger on second loop even on hills.
gearing felt good, tapped on brakes on out section due to some rough road, bike felt pretty shaky there
new saddle was good, felt a bit of perinial soreness near end of 1st loop but adjusted hips and then no more problems
glukeos burned throat, temp probably warmed it up some, did not take any gels

push harder on some of the hills - never stood in saddle which may have given me a little better time, try to get more comfortable on some of the fast downhills

Tried to dismount but bike was wobbly as hell, think my balance was off from coming down off the ride, didn't feel stable
getting out of shoes very good, then racked via handlebars

work on dismount to get off bike faster

it started getting pretty hot on this run - doused myself with water at last aid station, think helped some
still can't get anything at aid stations - feel like running too fast to get much out of it
did feel better on run splits this race than prior races - split times around 45 sec off which is best margin this year - felt better focus on running form this leg


same as before - feel like the game here on being faster is more mental than physical

lots of walking around, tons of water and then some electrolytes, had half a bottle of muscle milk, stretching


bike handling on some of the hills, but that will come with more time
on the runs feel I'm in a mental game more than a physical one - hope that by shifting my focus to the run for the 1/2 marathon this fall will change the game there



Overall I was pretty happy with this race - ranked 7 of 10 in masters, and missed placing in top 10 overall males by 90 seconds, which was all lost on the run
This was by far the toughest course, but the day after didn't feel totally sore or spent - maybe it means could have pushed harder but also feels like my fitness continues to improve
Race Center scoring points - 80.12
Total Points for 2010 season - 239.74 - this would have put me at the 5th slot amongst the 2009 Oly Du rankings
Do feel like next year can have a better performance, just knowing the course helps