General Discussion Race Reports! » Hansen Dam Triathlon Rss Feed  
Moderators: k9car363, alicefoeller Reply

Hansen Dam Triathlon - Triathlon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
Sylmar, California
United States
Sunny
Total Time = 2h 25m 21s
Overall Rank = 28/100
Age Group = 18-24 M
Age Group Rank = 2/8
Pre-race routine:

The one nice thing about sleeping poorly the night before a race is that I was able to wake-up about 5 min before my alarm went off. I rolled out of bed, and threw on some sweats and grabbed some coffee to warm-up at the front desk (thanks motel-6). Breakfast was a small bread roll plus 2 slices ezekiel bread with almond butter and a banana. i then drove (in the dark) to the event, pumped my tires up in the parking lot (in the dark), and began setting up transition (slightly lighter now). There should be a rule that transition shouldn't open before its light out.
Event warmup:

As the start drew nearer transition was getting a bit crowded, so took my beta-alanine and went for my warm-up jog around the lake/dam. I did some light jogging and some dynamic warm-ups (high knees, butt kicks, skipping, strides ect.), which in combination with my sweats usually gets me pretty warm in about 5-10 min. Which was good, because that was about all the time I had. I checked my transition area one last time, ate a few cyto-max drops and headed down to get a brief warm-up in the water. Which felt like bath water. Perfect.
Swim
  • 30m 37s
  • 1500 meters
  • 02m 02s / 100 meters
Comments:

So after waiting for the obligatory 20 minutes past the planned start time my wave was finally sent off. We blundered and dolphin-dived our way out past the pier, hooked a sharp left and began swimming for the first buoy. At this point I realized i was staring right into the sun-- and my goggles aren't tinted. Luckily, I was able to get my bearings about 5 yds past the first buoy, turned and headed for the second one. Sighting was much easier on this leg, and I rounded the buoy pretty tightly. The next leg was a bit longer and I was able to get into a nice groove. Rounded the final buoy and headed back for shore, prior to making a right turn and swimming another lap. My second lap felt better than the first-- I now had a feel for the course, and for the first time I wasn't gulping down half the lake. Third lap I kicked it into higher gear about 2/3rds of the way through to get warmed up for the bike.
For my first time swimming a mile in open (relatively) water, this was a great swim. I was able to keep a good pace, avoid getting kicked in the head (too much), and finished with a good amount of energy left for the bike/run.
What would you do differently?:

I spent a good portion of the time swimming on my own-- being that there were only 100 olympic participants the packs thinned out pretty quick. I easily could have been a bit faster by finding someone to draft off of. Also, I lose a bit (read: a lot) of my momentum while sighting which is something i need to work on.
Transition 1
  • 02m 28s
Comments:

After triumphantly exiting the water I began my customary incredibly slow jog to T1. I actually found my bike on the first try this time-- another plus. Not wearing a wetsuit made a huge difference here-- my t1 was 5 min faster than my last race.Ate another two cyto-max drops, had a few oz of water, and stuffed my ride nutrition into my tri-suits handy pocket (quite happy to have found this the night before). I then clumsily buckled myself into my shoes and jogged my bike to the mount line.
What would you do differently?:

I should've worn the timing chip on the opposite ankle-- its strap was brushing the crank during the ride. And also I could be faster, but really the only thing that's gonna make that happen is more racing. Which I'm okay with.
Bike
  • 1h 00m 8s
  • 22 miles
  • 22.00 mile/hr
Comments:

Just as got on my bike and was pedaling away from tranisiton I noticed that my ankle strap for my timing chip was brushing against my bike. Luckily it was only htting the crank and I was able to fiddle with it so it didn't cause any problems. Heading out of transisiton it was a short ride to the main road, then a right hand turn. The course then headed out along a straight road for a while. I got into the aero bars as soon as i hit the straight part, only to find that it actually involved a bit of climbing. Luckily, my hoods are pretty agressive and the power i get from riding in them makes up for the lack of aerodynamics. I would say i spent this portion about 50/50 aero and hoods. The course then made another right hand turn into a bit of a descent. I got a nice cadence going, and my legs were loosening up so this part felt pretty good. About a 100-200ft climb came next, followed by a sharp right into a fast descent. I hung out in the drops for a while, then decided I was comfortable in the aero bars. A couple of rolling hills were up next, but none were too much of a challenge. I actually passed a few people of pure tt bikes going up these short (50ft or so) climbs. The course then made a horseshoe bend (we actually were told to slow down here) and climbed about 100 ft to the top of the dam. Riding across the dam was certainly a high point of the day-- about 10-15 min or so of flat riding in the aero bars while enjoying the view of the flood plains to either side. After the the road across the dam the course swung by the entrance to the venue, and we were joined by the sprint riders. I chose this point to have my Cliff gel and drink about 3-4oz of pure water-- didn't want to sour my stomach. I had finished about half a bottle of skratch hydration mix by this point. The second lap went a little faster as I had figured out where to push/get aero on the course. As I headed back in to transition i made sure to put on an intense tt face for the race cameras (the fact that I was trying to amuse myself was a good indicator that I didn't overdo it on the bike, something I was planning on). Confused by the volunteer's shouts of "dismount at the bump" I actually got off the bike about 20 yds too early. Woops. I laughed it off though, and jogged into transition.
What would you do differently?:

Nothing. I performed just as well as I expected. A 20+ mph avg. is definitely good in my book. I *maybe* could of pushed a little harder, but more than likely that would have cratered me for the run.
Transition 2
  • 02m 53s
Comments:

This was a fairly standard t2 for me. Pulled on my socks, tied my shoes (I should probably get the scrunchies to save time), grabbed my run nutrition and jogged out. No catastrophes.
What would you do differently?:

Not dismount the bike 20 yards too early, see above.
Run
  • 49m 34s
  • 10 kms
  • 04m 59s  min/km
Comments:

The run was certainly an experience. The course was exceptionally loopy and often doubled back on itself. Plus, to create the 10k course they essentially took the 5k course (we ran with the sprint distance triathletes) and added in another 5k worth of detours. I intentionally left my watch in transition (not that I was timing anyways), which may have saved me from a demoralizing glance at it. The run was pretty hot (and my armpits were chafing something awful) so i stripped my trisuit down to the waist. The scenery was very nice (trail run) and I would've appreciated it if I wasn't running on loose dirt half the time. However, the one upshot was that there was 6 aid stations which all handed out the 8oz plastic cups of water-- 1 oz for drinking, 7oz poured on head. Pace wise I headed out pretty easy, and started revving it up when I passed the halfway mark and had my Rocktane gel (tasted like a creamsicle). I've mentioned before how the trail often doubled back on itself, so occasionally i got a little excited thinking the finish was far closer than it actually was. However, all things must come to an end, and as I i labored up the final (dirt) 30 ft climb the finish line was in sight. One more obstacle remained, and that was a 100m stretch of beach sand. I think i may have taken the world's worst finishing picture-- I can see myself now: legs awkwardly splayed out (newton distance s ≠ good sand running), tongue hanging out, bleached white chest complete with carb distended belly, and a very pissed off expression on my face. But i ran hard, and that's what counts.
What would you do differently?:

Body glide. Enough said.
Apart from that, I'm ok with running a 49 min 10k of loose packed trail as the final leg of an olympic tri. My nutrition worked great-- no cramps, dehydration ect. Pacing wise I don't think i was passed by any other 10k runners-- i certainly passed a bunch. Like the swim the smaller number of olympic participants made it so I was actually alone for a good amount of the time
Post race
Warm down:

After thoroughly dousing myself in water (i may have drunk a little too) I realized that my sensitive nordic skin was in immediate danger of a horrific burn. With a sinking feeling, though, I realized that my t-shirts were in the car. Luckily, my "support" person was able to lend me a *shudder* patagonia sun hoodie. Yes, such an article of clothing does exist. Yes, I'm thankful that no one could tell who I was inside. This awkward looking (yet wonderfully functional) article of clothing kept my tender white body safe from the horribly damaging sun until I could pack up my transition, pound a few protein bars, and get a t-shirt (and about a pint of sunscreen sunscreen on. By this point, it was HOT. I waited about an hr, threw on a shout-out shirt to a tri-club I have limited associations to, and got my age group medal. I left the event very satisfied with my performance (read: i went and stuffed my face with about 1400 kcal worth of food)

What limited your ability to perform faster:

I ain't perfect

Event comments:

Overall, an extremely enjoyable weekend. but beyond the excitement of race day and whatnot what i'm truly happy with was my training. I avoided injury or a downward spiral into mopiness, managed to concurrently weight train, maintained a good BF%, and topped it all off with a hard race effort. Unfortunately it will probably be my last structured training cycle before heading off to college. I can only hope that I'll be able to keep this level of training up (yes I do enjoy it) once i get there. But enough future musings for now. Tomorrow I'll spend resting, planning training for the next month or so, and working-- but now it's time to enjoy the moment (read: I'm going to assault the kitchen).




Last updated: 2013-08-18 12:00 AM
Swimming
00:30:37 | 1500 meters | 02m 02s / 100meters
Age Group: 3/8
Overall: 0/100
Performance:
Suit: Just my tri suit
Course: The couse (which I'm told was much longer than the years prior) was a three lap loop around four buoys. The fact that it was held in a pretty small lake/dam was a huge moral boost, in addition to the fact the water was warm and chop free.
Start type: Run Plus: Waves
Water temp: 78F / 26C Current: Low
200M Perf. Average Remainder: Good
Breathing: Average Drafting: Below average
Waves: Navigation: Average
Rounding: Average
T1
Time: 02:28
Performance: Below average
Cap removal: Good Helmet on/
Suit off:
Wetsuit stuck? No Run with bike: Yes
Jump on bike: No
Getting up to speed: Below average
Biking
01:00:08 | 22 miles | 22.00 mile/hr
Age Group: 3/8
Overall: 0/100
Performance: Good
Wind: None
Course: The course was a 11 or so mile loop done twice. I would definitely categorize it as a fast bike.
Road: Smooth Dry Cadence: n/a
Turns: Average Cornering: Average
Gear changes: Good Hills: Good
Race pace: Comfortable Drinks: Just right
T2
Time: 02:53
Overall: Average
Riding w/ feet on shoes
Jumping off bike
Running with bike Below average
Racking bike Average
Shoe and helmet removal Average
Running
00:49:34 | 10 kms | 04m 59s  min/km
Age Group: 3/8
Overall: 0/100
Performance: Good
Course: Deceptively long. Not the hardest course I've ran, but certainly not easy: loosely packed trails, looping route, and an uphill finish
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
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: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 4

{postbutton}
2013-08-18 8:55 PM


3

Subject: Hansen Dam Triathlon
General Discussion-> Race Reports!
{postbutton}
General Discussion Race Reports! » Hansen Dam Triathlon Rss Feed  
RELATED POSTS

Hansen Dam Triathlon

Started by GolfMark
Views: 1329 Posts: 3

2007-08-21 6:41 PM WaterDog66

Hansen Dam Triathlon

Started by christian rope
Views: 1425 Posts: 1

2007-08-20 11:05 PM christian rope

Hansen Dam Triathlon

Started by tdebeers
Views: 1425 Posts: 1

2006-09-17 6:09 PM tdebeers

Hansen Dam Triathlon

Started by domlazz
Views: 1476 Posts: 1

2005-08-16 7:39 PM domlazz

Hansen Dam Triathlon

Started by ChuckyFinster
Views: 1985 Posts: 6

2005-08-20 1:17 AM ChuckyFinster
RELATED ARTICLES
date : January 26, 2012
author : dantheman1123
comments : 1
My first triathlon was at age 56. At first I was just the cameraman at my daughter's first triathlon, then I am doing the races that she has done.
 
date : November 29, 2011
author : trmat79
comments : 2
A story about the motivation to overcome everyday challenges
date : October 4, 2011
author : MikeyT1298
comments : 6
First time triathlete conquers swim struggle and finishes at the front of the pack
 
date : August 8, 2011
author : Gina60
comments : 16
I can't run a seven-minute mile anymore, but that doesn't take away from the joy of finishing
date : June 27, 2011
author : pyroman1_1
comments : 3
Lake Havasu Tri 3/19/2011
 
date : May 26, 2011
author : gdsemiller
comments : 14
Towards the end of December 2010 both my daughter and son came up to me and said “Daddy we want you to get healthy and not die."
date : April 27, 2011
author : brumby11
comments : 5
An impending baby inspires a father to become fit, along the way discovering world of triathlon
 
date : September 4, 2004
author : Team BT
comments : 0
We did really well with the beers, which will explain my reluctance to get out of bed on Saturday morning.