Tri Harder!
Goals:
Swim - 35 minutes (2'07 per 100y)
Bike - 1 hour, 35 minutes (16mph)
Run - 60 minutes (10min mile)
TOTAL: 190 minutes (3 hrs, 10 minutes plus transition)
Actual:
Swim - 21:49 (1'18 per 100y) - YAY! (Thank you Hudson River current...)
Bike - 1:48:35 (13.7mph) - a little slow especially on hills, but I had enough gas in the tank to finish
Run - 1:18:48 (12.75min mile) - a lot of slow running, walk through the hydration centers plus a potty break...
TOTAL: 209 minutes (3 hrs, 29 minutes plus transition)
Okay, so not super awesome, but not horrible either. Plus I beat my arch nemesis' time by nearly half an hour, so all is well with the world.
Swim recap:
I actually felt alright with this one. I swam straight, I maintained my focus, I sighted well. In the first 1200m I probably swam 150m on my back, letting myself take some deep breathing moments and focus myself. My wetsuit felt really tight around my chest so I was trying to stay calm and breathe deeply. I swam the last 300m+ without flipping over and without altering my stroke. I am very proud of the swim. Last year, with training, I finished in 19:30. A difference of only 2:19. I'll take it.
Bike recap:
I rented a great bike (thank you, Bike Gods) from my favorite LBS, Sids. A little Cannondale Synapse - carbon frame, lots of zip. My average speed was around 14mph, which is down about 4mph from my "trained" speed, but I still was able to hit speeds of over 30mph almost every mile of the race. Top speed (downhill, of course): 37.4mph.
zoom zoom.
Run recap:
This was not the greatest thing I have ever done, but I definitely went the way of
"slow and steady". I ran steadily when I ran, good form instead of sloppy. I walked briskly if I walked - mostly through the hydration stations - and I smiled as much as I could. It was a hot day, so I made sure to stay hydrated (definitely saw someone in non-responsive mode being taken away by the EMTs). I also made a deal with myself: run the entire way in from the mile 5 marker. I kept the promise, and had been running for about a quarter mile prior to that, so the last mile and a half were walk-free.
Transitions recap:
Setup in the morning went well. I was fortunate to have my immediate bike "neighbor" missing AND I was right next to the end of a rack, which always means a little extra space. Good position in an easy to spot row. I didn't miss my rack running in either time, which is good on me! The walk to swim start was lovely. I probably jumped the gun with my wetsuit and put it on too early, but I thought I was making a good decision at the time... Ended up biting me in the rear when I realized I hadn't used the potty and time was slipping away to do so. This resulted in a moderately full bladder to start the race. "Pee during the swim" you say? I would love to... except I couldn't. Mental block? Inability to pee and move? Exceptional potty training as a child? Who knows... no dice.
So, that lead to bike transition. I'm in Yellow, so we get 700m of barefoot running in a wetsuit. Makes transition time a bit long. I remembered to wipe my "Hudson beard" off nice and early and stripped down to my waist almost right away so that I could breathe again. Took the actual transition into bike slower than normal, making sure to put on gloves (good idea) and open my shot blocks in advance (also smart) plus a hit of my inhaler (to be safe). Not a bad transition, just a bit on the tortoise side of things... Oh, and did I mention that I still had to pee?
Twenty-five miles of bumpy biking later, I transitioned into running gear - again taking some time and care. I made sure to hit the ground running with a slow and steady mentality, plus smiling. Smiling makes you faster. A good thing, too, since I was wearing very little red (inside joke).
After about the second mile, I was really distracted by my bladder... so I did take the time to pitstop, which is obnoxious enough when you're wearing a trisuit. Doubly so when you're wearing TWO. I wore my regular trisuit under my team-issued garments (they are relatively cheap and ride up, causing VERY unattractive photos and minimizing comfort). Potty break probably took 4-6 minutes.
Takeaways:
Train. Duh.
Smiling is good. Form is good. Hydration is good. Forgetting to use the bathroom is bad.
When it comes right down to it, I want to be a happy athlete. And racing the New York Triathlon on a hot summer day makes me happy!
