Whirlpool Steelhead 70.3 Triathlon - Duathlon


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Benton Harbor, Michigan
United States
CAPRI Events
78F / 26C
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 47m 2s
Overall Rank = 537/1890
Age Group = 35-39
Age Group Rank = 81/257
Pre-race routine:

Ate a bowl of oatmeal and drank some Gatorade. Once at the race site, had half a banana and a little Accelerade.
Event warmup:

Got fairly warmed up with all the walking to the swim start that got cancelled and then the walk to the run start.
Run
  • 16m 30s
  • 2.1 miles
  • 07m 52s  min/mile
Comments:

Nice and easy to start, didn't push it at all.
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Transition 1
  • 01m 19s
Comments:

Knocked off a water bottle while mounting the bike from the rear hydration system, but got it picked up and back in place in only a few seconds, so no real big deal. Was pretty happy with the transition overall as it was a very large transition area.
What would you do differently?:

not knock off a bottle
Bike
  • 2h 36m 43s
  • 56 miles
  • 21.44 mile/hr
Comments:

I definitely tried to just keep a nice easy pace from the start and not get caught up in the whole need to go out hard and fast early. I was able to maintain my effort consistently throughout and when there were even some slight inclines, I felt great and was able to spin right over them. In hind sight, I probably could have ridden much harder, but this being my first HIM, or long duathlon as it turned out, I am happy I just maintained a controlled effort.
What would you do differently?:

I probably wouldn't carry 3 full bottles of fluids with me even though they were the drinks I was used to taking. I could have gotten by with just my aero bottle and a half bottle and picked up what I needed at each aid station and saved a little weight.
Transition 2
  • 01m 58s
Comments:

Took a little longer than I needed to in this area, but I wanted to be sure to take a migrained medication as I was feeling some first signs coming on and I didn't need that to complicate the run. This caused me to lose about 30 seconds finding the meds in my bag.
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Run
  • 1h 50m 33s
  • 13.1 miles
  • 08m 26s  min/mile
Comments:

I was very pleased with the run being as I had only run exactly 3 miles of run training in the 2 months prior to the race due to a calf muscle tear. My pace felt very comfortable and I had no pain or additional problems with the calf.

The volunteers on the course and the wonderful woman with the hose at around mile 11 were much appreciated.
What would you do differently?:

nothing
Post race
Warm down:

Stretched a bit in the post race area and had a nice cold root beer. Had a 10 minute massage and walked to the car which was about 1.5 miles from the transition area so that was probably the best cool down.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Probably just trying to be respectful of the distances and not push too hard. It was a long ways from home and no place to be feeling like junk the next day when you have to drive for 10 hours so I didn't over do it. I know I could have ridden much harder and probaly run a bit faster, but I'll leave that for next time. I know I didn't push hard enough in the end becuase it just felt easy. I wonder how it would have been with the swim first. I also had to protect my previously injured leg so I didn't run as hard as I would have liked.

Event comments:

An awesome race and everything would have run on time had it not been for the water conditions. The race directors did an excellent job and I would love to do this race again if it weren't so far away. There are some pretty amazing atheletes at this race so it is really awesome to get to take apart in a race with people of that ability.




Last updated: 2008-06-20 12:00 AM
Running
00:16:30 | 02.1 miles | 07m 52s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/257
Overall: 0/1890
Performance: Good
Course: Decent hill in the first mile, but I love hills so that was a great way to get things going and get warmed up. Otherwise very flat.
Keeping cool Good Drinking
T1
Time: 01:19
Overall: Good
Run with bike? Good
Jump on bike? Good
Getting up to speed and into shoes: Good
Biking
02:36:43 | 56 miles | 21.44 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/257
Overall: 0/1890
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: Very nice course. I really thought it was very flat all things considered. The roads were in very good shape.Well marked and very well staffed by both police and volunteers.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: 94
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 01:58
Overall: Good
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike Average
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:50:33 | 13.1 miles | 08m 26s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/257
Overall: 0/1890
Performance: Good
Course: Another nice hill at the beginning of the run and then it was fairly flat except for the hill you repeated on the Whilpool campus, I liked that hill.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 5
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Too easy
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? No
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5