Soma Triathlon - Triathlon


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Tempe, Arizona
United States
The Red Rock Company
80F / 27C
Sunny
Total Time = 5h 42m 34s
Overall Rank = 256/689
Age Group = 45-49
Age Group Rank = 31/74
Pre-race routine:

The day before I had developed a stuffy head cold. So, had been taking all sorts of immune boosters, sudafed, and vitamins. Didn't sleep very good, probably only about 4-5 hours of sleep. Woke up feeling so-so at 4:00AM. Showered and shaved, and then had a slice of toast with peanut butter and honey, plus a cup of coffee with creamer. Left the house at around 4:35 with the wife.
Event warmup:

Not a lot of warming up. Got my transition area all set. A little frustrated with the person next to me. Kinda felt like they got there late, and just started slinging things around. Took care of a bathroom break, and then went back into transition to double check my stuff. Glad I did, as some of my stuff had been moved around. Got lubbed up with tri-slide and sunscreen, then put on the wetsuit. About 15-20 minutes before gun time, really focused on convincing myself that I was feeling awesome. Good mind set helped me overcome any side affects of the head cold.
Swim
  • 45m
  • 2000 meters
  • 02m 15s / 100 meters
Comments:

Since swimming isn't my strong sport, I self started to the very rear center of the group. Started off swimming up on, and over some other slow swimmers. Also had some faster ones come up on me. Didn't panic, just tried to focus on finding clean water. Within the first 200m, had one really good kick to my left hand. Almost lost my wedding ring, and am pretty sure that's the point I lost my Garmin GPS. Really focused on a steady pace, and continual sighting. Had a few occasions where I had to come to a stop and correct for other swimmers. The head cold never really affected me on the swim. Felt I did an okay job on sighting, as I stayed fairly well on course. I naturally tend to swim to the right, so lots of correcting. Very happy with my time, as my last event was an Olympic 1500m swim, which I did in 40 minutes.
What would you do differently?:

Strap on my GPS tighter. Continue to work on refining my stroke and sighting.
Transition 1
  • 02m 42s
Comments:

Getting out of the water, the volunteers did a great job. First getting me up on the steps, then undoing the back of my wetsuit, then the wetsuit strippers. Great job by all. This is when I noticed the loss of my GPS. At first I thought that maybe it had come off when the wetsuit was pulled off my arms. I cradled everything in my arms and made it to my transition area. Felt like I took a lot of time looking through my wetsuit to see if the GPS was in there. No luck. A slight mooment of panic, wondering what to do next. Only lasted a second. Got the helmet and bike shoes on, unracked the bike, and ran out of T1. Very surprised, and happy with my T1 time. Thought i was going to be in the 3-4 minute mark.
What would you do differently?:

Not much to do differently. May try clipping the shoes to the bike and getting those on during the ride.
Bike
  • 2h 52m 10s
  • 56 miles
  • 19.52 mile/hr
Comments:

Once I got onto the bike, I had to start doing some mental math. Without the GPS, I was at a loss as to when to take on fuel. I had everything calculated out, and inked on my arm, which became useless. After some mental math and reviewing the course, I came up with a plan for fueling that would hopefully be close to my needs. This took about 4-5 miles of thought. It was about this time that I also noticed my cadence meter was not working. Must have moved one of the sensors while transporting the bike. So, with no heart rate monitor data, and no cadence data, I had to just go by perceived effort. My last Olympic triathlon, I overcooked the bike, and fell apart on the run. So, this race was all about easy pace and conserving energy. If I felt like I was going too hard (hills), I would then focus on some recovery time to get everything under control. Felt good for the first 2 laps. On lap 3 I started running into some sit bone discomfort. Dealt with it, pain is only temporary. Nutrition and fueling were spot on, as I felt plenty of energy after the bike. Surprised with my time. During my workout rides, the easy effort always translated into 3+ hours.
What would you do differently?:

Give the bike a thorough check out to make sure everything is working correctly.
Transition 2
  • 01m 21s
Comments:

Felt very good in this transition. Racked the bike, helmet off, switched shoes, grabbed race belt/visor/fuel and away I went.
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 2h 01m 21s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 09m 16s  min/mile
Comments:

Really missed my GPS on my run as I like to monitor my pace. So, just ran and focused on a good breathing pattern. Glad I took the time to match breathing patterns to heart rate zones during my training. The pace I was in matched a zone 3 run. I planned on fueling at miles 2, 5, 8, and 11. Turns out that was too much. Stomach felt very heavy at mile 10. Took on the fuel at mile 11 anyway. There were a few times I felt my pace slowing, and would concentrate on picking it up. Walked through all aid stations. Sipped a bit of gatorade at each, and poured cold water over the head. Was hoping for a sub 2 hour time, but am happy with what the effort and time.
What would you do differently?:

Fuel on mile 2, 6, and 10.
Post race
Warm down:

After crossing the finish line, focused on walking around for a bit. My last race I felt very light headed and dizzy. So, wanted to avoid that this time. Still felt a bit light headed about 10 minutes later, but a short rest in the shade took care of that. Had some fruit, connected with family and friends, and focused on cooling down.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Head cold 2 days prior to event. Trained hard for 5 months with no illness, then 2 days before...wham!

Event comments:

Since this was my first 70.3 event, a lot of nerves leading up to the race. Had to mentally remind myself to trust my training,and get into a good mind set. Kept repeating throughout the race that I was feeling AWESOME! Great race and atmosphere. All volunteers were wonderful and happy people. They deserve a big thanks and a pay raise!




Last updated: 2013-10-21 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:45:00 | 2000 meters | 02m 15s / 100meters
Age Group: 0/74
Overall: 0/689
Performance: Average
Suit: Wetsuit
Course: Out and back.
Start type: Deep Water Plus:
Water temp: 70F / 21C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 02:42
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
02:52:10 | 56 miles | 19.52 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/74
Overall: 0/689
Performance: Good
Wind: Some
Course: Technical course with lots of U-turns. Hills were short, but steep. Stayed in aero position on all hills, just tried to get into the right gear to keep a steady rythym.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence:
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Average Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:21
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
02:01:21 | 13.1 miles | 09m 16s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/74
Overall: 0/689
Performance: Average
Course: Two laps around Tempe Town Lake. Flat and 98% paved.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Too much
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
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: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 4