R&R Bicycle Tinfoilman Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Tucson, Arizona
United States
TriTucson
60F / 16C
Overcast
Total Time = 1h 28m 47s
Overall Rank = 79/162
Age Group = 35-40
Age Group Rank = 17/34
Pre-race routine:

Got to the race site about 5:20. Figured the last rack would be easy to remember, so I found a spot. Set up my stuff and chatted with the people around me. Later, I saw that other people had their towels behind us against the rope (since we were the last rack) so I moved my stuff back there too, so I would have easy access to my bike. This was a good location/strategy to remember for future races if possible.
Event warmup:

I watched wave 1, and actually thought "Hey..I might be better than a few people." There were some people who were really struggling, and then a few sandbaggers who got out of the pool at 16:00. Wave 2 was mostly relay teams, so it was a mixed bag. Durring this heat it started raining. Not huge drops, but lots of the pelting down. I jogged back and forth under a canopy, and just tried to get my heart rate up. 3 min left. I went to my lane, took off my sweats, and jumpped in the water.
Swim
  • 19m 26s
  • 825 yards
  • 02m 22s / 100 yards
Comments:

Got in the water, pushed off to test my goggles, side stroked back, and I swear not 2 seconds later...GO! Holy sh*t! That sudden start did NOT help the panic and freak out that was about to ensue. Let's just say that this was NOT the swim race I was hoping for. Yes, yes.....I finished it, and that is way more than I could have done back in June when I didn't even know how to swim, but I am not happy. I just could NOT turn the freak-out thoughts off in my head. I literally just wanted to stop. The only thing that kept me going was thinking about how I would let down my coach and family. I clung to the wall WAY too much, and it probably added, no joke, 2 min to my time. At one point I turned to start my length as a backstroke, and I heard my friend cheer me on, and I thought "I CANNOT do the backstroke! I am not here to do the backstroke!" So I turned around and crawled. I could not get my breath and I just couldn't snap out of it. I think the last 1/3 of the race was a little better, but I just was getting so pissed because I KNEW I could do better. I HAD done better in practice. Grrrr.... THEN...to add insult to injury...the pool is extremely hard to get out of. I tried and failed, then the like 17yr old chick lifeguard failed, then on the third attempt, I finally made it! That must have been entertaining to watch!! Oh, FYI....I was a bit slower than the time I put down...but I was not the last one out of the pool in my wave. Thank goodness!
What would you do differently?:

Get a pre-race frontal lobotomy!
Transition 1
  • 04m 39s
Comments:

It had rained all over my stuff, so it was all wet. I dried off the best I could as I stood and tried to control my hyperventilation. I threw on a long-sleeved dry mesh shirt, as it was overcast and rainy at times, and wasn't really warm, so I thought I might be more comfortable in it with the bike wind pounding on me. (I was right.)
What would you do differently?:

Try to hurry up a bit. I could have done it faster, but I was trying to catch my breath at the same time, and it was my first time, so I was wasn't as fast as I could have been. My son was also standing there asking me questions. I love my son...but that was a distraction I could have done without.
Bike
  • 36m
  • 12 miles
  • 20.00 mile/hr
Comments:

I felt really strong on the bike. Helped me recover from the crappy swim. Right out of the parking lot I passed 2 chicks that were slowly getting starting. On the entire course I think I passed about 12 people. 1 of them was even a very fit guy on a mountain bike. I think I made him mad, and he tried to keep up, but I left him in the dust. Granted, a few of the people I passed were not the fittest people out there, but the most of them were, so it felt really good to chug past them. Especially on the hills! (Thank you AZ Tri Club for the nasty underground tri practice out in the mountains!) My first lap was just over 12 min, and I got faster with each lap. Shifting was great, but I can't wait to get an aero bottle. I just HATE reaching down, and getting my bottle. Wasted time and energy!!! It was either on lap 2 or 3 that I noticed my front tire making a "womp, womp, womp" sound. I was pretty sure it usually did not make this noise, and I realized it was my stem, and the beginnings of a flat. I STILL do not know how to change a flat (I know...I know...save it!) So if I got a flat, I was toast. There was no assistance in today's race. So knowing this, I just didn't dwell on it, and just hammered on thinking if I forgot about it, it would go away. This strategy apparently worked, as I finished just fine, but later found my bike with a flat. THANK YOU THANK YOU Tri Gods, for sparing me this time!!!!
What would you do differently?:

Cannot wait to get pedals and shoes! My toes were completely numb in my toe cages, and this totally affects your ability to run!!!
Transition 2
  • 02m
Comments:

Quickly took off my helmet and threw on my hat. Grabbed my running water bottle and I was good to go.
What would you do differently?:

Put glasses on FIRST before the helmet in T1 (like my coach said) so that I did not have to take them off, take the helmet off, then put them back on. Stupid!
Run
  • 26m 42s
  • 3 miles
  • 08m 54s  min/mile
Comments:

Started off with the numb toes, and just tried to power through that. I spend a lot of my run time (after biking) trying to regulate my breathing. It's much faster and out of control after the bike than when I just run normally, and I normally run with music to drown out the sound! I hate to hear myself! Freaks me out!
So I start running, and I realize there is a 79 year old man in front of me!!!!! 79!!!! I sooo want to be him when I grow up!! Sad part was I was not catching him! So I thought, well, I just need to stay up with him. We both overtook a 24yrd old (Yea! Go older people!) Then FINALLY at the 1.1 mile mark, I overtook him. I think I passed 4 more chicks along the way. No one I passed came back to get me later, so that was good. Really didn't have a whole lot of kick at the end like I usually do, but hey...at that point...I just was happy I was still running.
What would you do differently?:

Maybe should have taking off my shirt, but I did not overheat, so I was ok.
Post race
Warm down:

Walked a bit and ate some of the stuff they were handing out.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

MY FREAKEN HEAD!!!!!!!!!! Grrrrrrrr..... I can be hard headed and stubborn like no one, but sometimes I can't apply that to myself in a helpful way! I am just so dissapointed in my swim! I also know that I need to be training harder. My running has suffered as of late, and I need to get back on track with a hard core training plan.

Event comments:

This was a great race. Very well organized. The only thing that sort of went wrong was not their fault. The swimming waves got behind due to people overestimating their swimming ability, being slotted in a fast wave, then taking way longer to finish. This holds up the next wave. Took forever at the end to have the drawing for prizes (of which I won nothing. Story of my life.) I liked this race...just wish they knew what SPRINT meant, and had like a 400yrd swim!!!! :-)




Last updated: 2006-06-16 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:19:26 | 825 yards | 02m 22s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/34
Overall: 0/162
Performance: Bad
Suit:
Course: 18 lane, 25yrd length pool, lanes were 8'8" wide, 2 people per lane. 33 lengths.
Start type: Inside Pool Plus: Waves
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current:
200M Perf. Remainder:
Breathing: Bad Drafting:
Waves: Navigation:
Rounding:
T1
Time: 04:39
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:36:00 | 12 miles | 20.00 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/34
Overall: 0/162
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: Course was a 4 mile square city block that you had to lap 3 times. 3 of the 4 streets were nicely paved. The 4th, which was the uphill one, was NASTY! Literally....a gravel road would have been better. At least gravel roads don't have cracks where the pavement actually goes UP, and huge potholes. On the opposite street, that was more downhill, you could get a nice speed going on that one!
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:00
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:26:42 | 03 miles | 08m 54s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/34
Overall: 0/162
Performance: Average
Course: Winding course through U of A campus. Some of the roads were crappy, some good, some sidewalk. Well marked, though.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall:
Mental exertion [1-5]
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4