St. Louis 5150 Triathlon - Triathlon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Innsbrook, Missouri
United States
Ultramax Sports
72F / 22C
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 54m 19s
Overall Rank = 211/509
Age Group = 3539
Age Group Rank = 32/56
Pre-race routine:

I stayed in Wentzville, MO. Other than my questionable choice of hotel, this worked out well. The family and I loaded up and left the questionable hotel at 5:45AM. I arrived at the race site about 6:15.

I racked the bike, and checked and re-checked everything. I had a large blister on my achilles that I covered with a hunk of duct tape...hoping it would hold.
Event warmup:

Did about 75 yards of light swimming until I spotted my friend's yellow tri jersey in the water so I sped up to catch him. I probably did about 150 yards of swimming to warm up. The water felt great.

At some point, i felt something sharp on the beach but didn't pay too much attention. I noticed after the race that I had about a 1.5" slice across the bottom of my big toe, and relatively deep. Fortunately, it had no affect on my race at all. During the pro wave, I noticed my duct tape was already peeling so I reapplied a new piece.
Swim
  • 32m 55s
  • 1500 meters
  • 02m 11s / 100 meters
Comments:

Wow, did this go awful. I started out with Josh right by me. I got about hip deep in the water and dove in. I immediately struggled. I need to re-assess my mental approach to racing. Within the first 200M I was physically exhausted. My breathing was extremely choppy and every stroke. When I sprint, I will frequently breath every stroke, but I was not sprinting now. I really struggled with finding my pace and rhythm. I lost sight of Josh and was pretty sure he was gone. It wasn't until I passed the halfway point that I felt myself relaxing enough to get into form. Even so, the first half of the swim I was just out of sorts. As I approached the last buoy I ran into quite a bit of traffic. I don't know if this was sprint course guys or just a school or slow fish. I, once again, ran into some guy leisurely doing the back stroke.

I'm pretty confused by this. On Thursday I swam 2100yd @ 1:40. I understand that open water is a different animal, but I felt that it should be well under 2:00/100
What would you do differently?:

In thinking back, I can remember a few times thinking about tucking my chin, but I don't remember focusing on my high elbow catch or really gaining traction in the water.
I need to change my mental approach and settle down and into my stroke. Everyone says you should start out slow and build, but I am wondering if I instead need to sprint at the start to try to create more space and then settle into my stroke.
Transition 1
  • 01m 13s
Comments:

The transition area was a pretty long run up a grassy hill filled with ruts. I expected this to gas me, but I handled it pretty well and was able to pass many walkers.

I was able to get into the bike relatively quickly.
What would you do differently?:

Until I get momentum in the Swim/Bike/Run I see no need to focus too much attention to trying to shave 10-15 seconds off of transition.
Bike
  • 1h 18m 50s
  • 24.85 miles
  • 19.04 mile/hr
Comments:

I actually felt pretty strong on the bike and was quite surprised to see my final bike time. I was rarely passed. I think I set myself so far behind on the swim that I really didn't catch too many people, but also didn't get passed by too many either.

In analyzing the date, the bike was really a tale of two halves.
Halfway through the bike there was one major hill. I did not hammer down the decent as I should have (I can't remember if there was a car, a corner or what, but there was some reason that I did not attack it was much as I should have).

My speed for that 1.5M section was only around 28mph and when I started the climb I could tell I had not attacked it well.

The 12 miles prior to the hill I averaged 21.66mph The 12 miles after the hill (not including the climb up the hill) I averaged only 19.57. That is a pretty significant drop off.

As I re-entered the resort, I think I just go too cautious. I knew there were a few descents with speed bumps on them and since I thought we were near the end I became a little tight and just coasted in. The problem is that there were probably 2-3 miles inside the result that I was not hammering on.
What would you do differently?:

Throw caution to the wind! Actively identify others in my age group and chase them.
Transition 2
  • 01m 36s
Comments:

T2 went well. There was a bit of a logjam at the dismount line and so I ended up coming to a complete stop before dismounting.
What would you do differently?:

Not much, see comments above.
Run
  • 59m 47s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 09m 40s  min/mile
Comments:

The run started with a trek through the grass and some small hills. When I actually felt like I was on the run course, I hit a decent size hill. Still gathering myself, I walked for a few moments. This is when I saw another BT'er Randy yell out to me. Shortly I started moving. The course was hilly, but the temperature was great, the course was mostly shaded and there was a nice breeze. Although the terrain was tougher, this run was nothing like my run in Topeka two weeks ago. Although the times are not much different.

I kept plugging along and walked some of the steeper hills. My approach was basically to keep running on every hill unless I saw that I was not gaining any ground on the walkers in front of me. At that point, I walked them.
What would you do differently?:

Two things: drop weight and get more miles in.

Running is still not natural for me and I feel I'm carrying about 15-20 pounds of extra weight that is slowing me down.

Also, when I do this event again, I will train more hill repeats. I have a hills route that I train on, but it involves 3-4 very long and steep hills, rather than a numerous smaller hills.
Post race
Warm down:

After the finish I grabbed a bottle of water and just relaxed. I was tired, but not comotose like I was 2 weeks ago. I hit the food tent and ate a few bites of a hotdog and a few bites of a cookie.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

As I've stated before, I'm still getting the same results, even though I feel I'm training harder.

Two things: my mental approach is off. My friend Josh (finished top 5) has got this part figured out. I can beat him like a drum in the water every day, but he's beaten me twice on race day. He doesn't have a problem with his mind playing games with him.


Also, I need to lose weight. If I was 15 pounds lighter, I have to believe every phase was improve.

The challenge is there and I'm serious. I am setting a goal now to race Omaha in 3 weeks at 185 pounds. This gives me 3 weeks to lose 9 pounds. That's aggressive, but I think doable.

Event comments:

What a great venue! The course is beautiful. The road was awesome (minus the speed-bumps). The run was beautiful as well. I can see how this would be awful when it's extremely hot, however this year it was great.

Also, UltraMax really does a nice job with being organized and on-time.Every question is answered. I'm a little bummed that the t-shirt seems a little cheap, but that is a minor gripe.

The venue also worked great with my family. My kids loved playing on the beach during the race and and I enjoyed a dip in the water with them to cool off afterward.




Last updated: 2013-04-29 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:32:55 | 1500 meters | 02m 11s / 100meters
Age Group: 30/56
Overall: 0/509
Performance: Bad
Suit: LLS Team In Training top and bottom
Course: Rectangle
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 82F / 28C Current: Low
200M Perf. Bad Remainder: Below average
Breathing: Below average Drafting: Average
Waves: Average Navigation: Average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:13
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Yes
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
01:18:50 | 24.85 miles | 19.04 mile/hr
Age Group: 28/56
Overall: 0/509
Performance: Average
Wind: Some with gusts
Course: The bike started and ended inside the resort. The resort has some rolling hills and also two types of speed bumps. The course was not closed and had some cars. The asphalt for almost all new, flat, with very few obstacles.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:36
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Bad
Jumping off bike Below average
Running with bike Average
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:59:47 | 06.21 miles | 09m 40s  min/mile
Age Group: 38/56
Overall: 0/509
Performance: Average
Course: A mix of gravel and pavement, hilly and shaded course.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Below average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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