Last Sunday I had my first triathlon of the 2009 season...the Rumpass in Bumpass. This was race number 3 of the VTS race circuit and was a Sprint distance race, 750m swim, 12mile bike and 5K run. The results from this race were nothing stellar for me and actually left me quite frustrated. I raced this same course last October in the Giant Acorn race and finished 4 minutes faster during that race. I think in part this was caused by 2 factors...one I was training through this race and had ridden 50 miles the day before and second the temperature of the water slowed me down extensively.
750 Meter Swim | 17:38 | 2:21/100m
My swim results did not reflect the training I have been doing for swimming. I was very frustrated with this portion of the race. Cold water and cramps caused me to finish considerably slower than I was planning. I think I could have finished the swim in 15 mins however I had to stop twice during the swim for about 30 seconds each time to regain myself. I also felt very restricted by the full body wet suit and wish I had my sleeveless suit on instead. Oh well the biggest take away from this swim is to focus hard on 1.2 miles and put this race behind me!
T1 | 2:03
I should get this time down around 1:30. I ended up going shirtless on the swim under my wetsuit and therefore spent unnecessary extra time in T1.
12 Mile Bike | 36:50 | 19.5mph
I felt fairly consistent on the bike. Although not my strongest showing, I feel I did quite well considering I had biked 50 miles the day before at a moderate effort. The bike portion of the race started off slow as I worked my way through the transition from swim. I almost forgot what it feels like to go from the water right to the bike...like I am going to explode! Within the first few minutes on the bike I began to settle into my race pace at around 20mph. I cranked down a Shot Gel and hammered away. During the bike I was only passed 3 times by what I like to call barn burners...those riders who come out of the gates way too fast and loose all their energy by mile 4! I quickly recouped my position on 2 of the 3 who passed me and wasn't passed again for the rest of the bike! The only thing I will note on the bike course was that I almost bit it hard and I mean hard! I was coming around the turn at about mile 6 and I decided to stay tucked in the aero position. I took the corner very wide and realized as I looked down that the 1 inch of tire between me and the road was half over the edge of a 2 foot deep pothole. Let's just say if I was another half an inch to the right I would have been picking pieces of my bike out of the woods. Close call!!
T2 | 1:13
T2 was ok. I finally remembered to put on my race number! There's a first time for everything! I always seem to forget my race number for the run...
5K Run | 24:03 | 7:45 min/mile
The run felt fine to me. I've been training at around a 7:30 to 7:45 pace so I was generally happy with the results from my run. The only major issue I had during the run was that I became dehydrated. I didn't nutrition and drink enough on the bike and paid for it dearly on the run. I had to stop at the turn around and take a good swig of water. That being said, I felt that I finished strong and am ready for the 13.1 miles at Whitelake in 2 weeks!
Overall Result | 1:21:45 | 19/28 Age Group | 108/274 Overall (Link)
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