Pinchot Olympic - TriathlonOlympic


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Lewisberry, Pennsylvania
United States
TriCatSports
67F / 19C
Sunny
Total Time = 3h 27m 55s
Overall Rank = 65/71
Age Group = 25-29
Age Group Rank = 10/10
Pre-race routine:

Out to Olive Garden the night before with Abby, my mom, Jason, and Eli for "Never-Ending Pasta." Ate way too much. Had a poor night sleep, but no big deal. Out of bed at 5:15, had a Power Bar, banana and big cup of coffee by 5:30. Out the door at 5:45...
Event warmup:

Arrived at Pinchot at 6:20. Set up transition without any issues and did some light stretching. Having not trained too much over the past month, I wasn't looking to win any awards, just to finish, ideally under 3:30.
Swim
  • 31m
  • 1760 yards
  • 01m 46s / 100 yards
Comments:

Since I was primarily concerned with finishing, I treated the swim as a warm-up for the bike and run portions of the race. Slow and steady focusing more on form than anything else. I still cannot navigate well and spent most of the swim slightly off course. None the less, no muscle cramps, no OW freak out, only a little bit of swallowed lake water, and my form only broke down towards the end as I was tired of swimming.
I was out of the water at 31:??, 4+ minutes under my goal.
What would you do differently?:

Train more on distance and speed. My form is far from perfect, but I think I "focus on form" when training as an excuse to avoid working harder or longer.
Transition 1
  • 02m 17s
Comments:

The switch from being horizontal to vertical was rough on my body. I ran to transition with no problems, but once I arrived became dizzy. Every time I was on one leg (out of wetsuit, socks on, shoes on) I thought I might fall over. Still, transition went alright overall and while I might have been able to get out 10-20 seconds sooner had I not been dizzy, I was happy.
Bike
  • 1h 44m 31s
  • 27 miles
  • 15.50 mile/hr
Comments:

Getting out of T1 I take things easy knowing that there is a steep hill coming soon. This pays off, as I manage to get up the hill okay. I feel pretty rough the first lap as I drank too much fluid throughout the morning and was on the verge of vomiting during all the hill work. Despite this I was happy with the bike. I did not hit my goal time. Perhaps I was too conservative in my pacing and could have pushed harder, but with my little hybrid bike I was still working the entire 27 miles.
What would you do differently?:

Better regulate my fluid intake. It started with too much coffee in the morning and never really improved. Also, push harder during training to build up muscle mass and speed for race day. As I primarily ride my bike to commute to work, I tend to take it easy too often.
Transition 2
  • 00m 39s
Comments:

Great transition, no problems.
Run
  • 1h 09m 28s
  • 6.21 miles
  • 11m 11s  min/mile
Comments:

Off the bike I was struggling. I didn't have the "brick" phenomena, but I clearly was not running as fast as I normally do. I was able to jog about 2 miles before my ITB started acting up. I then ran/walked/ran/walked for about 2 miles and needed to walk the last 2 miles because my knee was in such pain.
It was somewhat demoralizing to have people passing me saying "you can do it" when in fact I couldn't. Not because I was out of shape or too tired, but because I was in too much pain. That being said, I was able to take a little consolation in knowing that it wasn't "my" fault I had to walk so much of the run, it was "the knee's" fault. Hopefully I can use the winter to get the whole ITB issue under control so next year I can race well in all three disciplines.
What would you do differently?:

As much as I want to blame my knee for the problems, in truth I did not stretch as much as I should have in the weeks leading up to the race and knew it was a definite possibility that my knee could do me in. I really need to do whatever is needed to get my knee taken care of before next year.
Post race
Warm down:

Having walked the last 2 miles of the race, I was fairly "cooled down" when I crossed the finish line. I did do some stretching, but nothing too intense as I was exhausted.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Overall, a lack of training. Not being able to train much over the last month really effected my ability to perform. Additionally the knee was obviously a big factor and a more race-appropriate bike would help.

Event comments:

Longest swim ever, check. Longest bike ride ever, check. Longest run ever, check. All in one event, not so bright. That said, it feels really good to have a season of racing under my belt. Reflecting on what I looked and felt like last September compared to this September, I feel like a new person. I can't wait until next year!




Last updated: 2009-03-13 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:31:00 | 1760 yards | 01m 46s / 100yards
Age Group: 0/10
Overall: 0/71
Performance: Average
Suit: Full Wetsuit
Course: Big Triangle around Lake Pinchot.
Start type: Wade Plus: Waves
Water temp: 65F / 18C Current: Low
200M Perf. Good Remainder: Average
Breathing: Good Drafting: Below average
Waves: Average Navigation: Bad
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 02:17
Performance: Average
Cap removal: Average Helmet on/
Suit off:
No
Wetsuit stuck? Yes Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: Yes
Getting up to speed: Average
Biking
01:44:31 | 27 miles | 15.50 mile/hr
Age Group: 0/10
Overall: 0/71
Performance: Average
Wind: Little
Course: 3 loops around the park
Road: Smooth Wet Cadence:
Turns: Good Cornering: Good
Gear changes: Good Hills: Average
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Too much
T2
Time: 00:39
Overall:
Riding w/ feet on shoes Average
Jumping off bike Good
Running with bike Good
Racking bike Good
Shoe and helmet removal Good
Running
01:09:28 | 06.21 miles | 11m 11s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/10
Overall: 0/71
Performance: Below average
Course: 2 loops on a wooded trail run.
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 3
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? No
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4