Pelican Fest Triathlon - TriathlonSprint


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Windsor, Colorado
United States
Pelican Fest LLC
68F / 20C
Sunny
Total Time = 1h 13m 5s
Overall Rank = 144/288
Age Group = 40-49
Age Group Rank = 23/30
Pre-race routine:

Stayed in Greeley so I would not have to get up in the middle of the night. Woke up at 5:30, showered and got my BT jersey and Pearl Izumi shorts on for the first race of the year!! Went quickly out to the lobby of the hotel, and toasted a bagel and made oatmeal. I scarfed down the oatmeal, put cream cheese on bagel and left right away as I was anxious to get to the transition area and grab a spot by the bike exit.
Event warmup:

Drove to race site the night before. Looked at the transition area, the hills of the run course, and then rode most of the bike course.

Went for a spin with Kerry Mowlam and Adam Weaver to see if their "speedy mojo" would rub off on me. Rode with high cadence up the hill right after the start point of the race. Felt good. Came back and parked bike. Jogged about 1/4 mile out to warm up legs with those same guys. Came back and steeled myself for the swim, that looked long to me!
Swim
  • 15m 49s
  • 875 yards
  • 01m 49s / 100 yards
Comments:

Interesting experience for me, as this was the first time I started in a wave, standing in the water, with a hundred people or so. I positioned myself in the middle, about 3/4 of the way back from the front, expecting to be pushed aside by faster swimmers. I met Scott Jackson from BT in the water and we wished each other well. As soon as the shot went off everyone started, and limbs seemed to be flying. I immediately started bumping into feet in front of me. I stopped and waited for a sec then started again. I found some other toes and rudely kept hitting them as I tried to find a space to swim in. I realized then that I had an opportunity to draft off someone which I've never done before. I was fine swimming to the first buoy, with my sighting dead on. I always saw someone on my right side as I breathed. The swim to the second buoy was a long way and somehow I ended up way out near the middle of the lake, and had to angle back to the buoy which probably cost me a couple minutes. (Here I ran into Scott Jackson again, which cracked us both up!) After I passed that buoy awkwardly, I set my sights on land! I was excited and my stroke had finally come together about 60% of the way through the race. I increased my effort to reach shore which I later realized was a mistake!
What would you do differently?:

First, probably start on the right or left to ease the start and avoid running into people. Second, practice drafting so I can get the spacing right. Third, practice sighting so I don't get way off course.Fourth, remain calm as I get to final swim leg so I am not out of breath in T1.
Transition 1
  • 01m 34s
Comments:

Ran hard out of the water, throwing off ear plugs, unzipping and taking off cap and goggles immediately. Myron was at swim exit offering encouragement. Ran into transition quickly and pulled down wetsuit, even with bodyglide, the heels were momentarily stuck as the suit was bunched up at my feet. As soon as the suit was off, I got the helmet, glasses and shoes on in a flash and ran out the exit. I was one row away from the exit. Jumped on my bike and took off hard. (Graham was there egging me on, telling me I better earn the fast disc I had!)
What would you do differently?:

Not much, just get wetsuit off faster.
Bike
  • 32m 2s
  • 10 miles
  • 18.73 mile/hr
Comments:

My goal was to average over 20mph thinking that I'd spin up the hill right at the start and then run big gears and stay aero on the rest of the route.

I f-ed this up big time. I was breathing like a maniac coming out of T1 and rode hard down the 1/2 mile to the start of the climb. I knew that I had to get low on the gears, and possibly stand on part of the climb, but I was almost immediately crushed by the climb. I was breathing too hard and could not get a smooth pace on the climb. About 40% of the way up, I misshifted and dropped the chain! I picked up the bike and for a second thought about throwing it, ala Normann Stadler, then reconsidered how pretty the Litespeed is! I got the chain back on, decided to try to take it easy up the rest of the hill, knowing that I would get to the flats and be able to smooth out my soin, get in a higher gear and get my HR down. I did exactly this, but my time was already sabotaged. I cornered fast, and passed a number of people. I had two or three much faster guys go by me. I stayed aero the whole time, passed in corners, cranked on the flats and ripped past people down the hill, but the damage was done with the slow climb and the chain drop.
What would you do differently?:

Oh boy.

Save something for the bike. Not drop the chain!!!
Transition 2
  • 01m 8s
Comments:

I felt fast here. I un hooked my shoes and tried to spin fast as I approached. I practically threw my bike into the rack,then threw off the shoes and helmet. I quickly put on my shoes, and visor, grabbed my glasses and race belt and ran! Myron encouraged me again in T2 :)
What would you do differently?:

nada.
Run
  • 22m 30s
  • 3.11 miles
  • 07m 14s  min/mile
Comments:

I was most nervous about the run as I had heard from racers in 2006 that the hills crushed people. I ran with a short cadence and handled it fine. At the peak of the second hill it took all my will to keep "running" as everyone around me walked at a snail's pace. I couldn't find logic in walking even the steepest point, which was ridiculously steep, in a Sprint RACE! I ran hard at the very last 1/4 mile, but was frustrated as I did not know where the end was.
What would you do differently?:

Check out the course map better, so I know where the end is. I could have stepped it up much sooner than I did.
Post race
Warm down:

Hung with Parker Tri Club folks, then meandered over to the PTC tent where we all had Heinekens and chocolate chip muffins !!! Awesome post-race diet!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of swim mileage!

Event comments:

I'll do this race again. Big learning day as I had the open water wave swim for the first time; drafting for the first time, and the awful hill climb at the start of the bike. The run went very well, as I passed about forty people that probably passed me on the bike hill. Transitions went pretty well for first race of the year. The brick warmup was also a new and good thing




Last updated: 2007-05-15 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:15:49 | 875 yards | 01m 49s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/30
Overall: 198/288
Performance: Below average
Suit: Long jon
Course: Lake swim, semi rectangular circuit.
Start type: Wade Plus: Shot
Water temp: 0F / 0C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Average
Breathing: Average Drafting: Good
Waves: Navigation: Below average
Rounding: Good
T1
Time: 01:34
Performance: Good
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Good
Biking
00:32:02 | 10 miles | 18.73 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/30
Overall: 160/288
Performance: Bad
Wind: Little
Course: Out and back through a flat residential area, and a flat farm road with a fairly large hill climb right at the start!
Road: Smooth  Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Average Hills: Bad
Race pace: Hard Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:08
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes Good
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
00:22:30 | 03.11 miles | 07m 14s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/30
Overall: 122/288
Performance: Good
Course: Insane run course! Two crazy steep hill climbs in the first mile and a half on the cart trails of the golf course. The first climb was only two hundred feet into the course.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
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] 3