Yesterday, even w/temperatures expected to be above 100 degrees, almost 1400 people came out to race in the 3rd annual Bridgeland Triathlon. This is a sprint tri consisting of a 500m swim/13.5mile bike/3.65mile run. The race director Aaron Palian, head coach of OnUrLeft, along with the guys over at OnUrMark put on one of the best sprint races in the state. Everything from the expo to the rewards, finisher medals, and post race activities were 5 star. They accounted for every little detail and made this race a huge success by appealing to everyone from the 1st timer, to the elites, and the spectators. Before I go through my race report, I just wanted to say thanks to all the volunteers, OnUrLeft, Austin Tricyclist, and Sarah for all the support and encouragement over the year. I read a quote I really like the other day saying that when you look back on your life in 30 years, you wont remember the all the accomplishments you had, but the relationships you developed from them. So even though I didn't place where I wanted to, I raced the race the way I wanted to and got to build on my relationships within the triathlon community. Now time for the race report:
Race morning started at 4:30am w/some granola, a banana, coffee, and water. I did a light 10 minute jog to warm up and then about 5-10 minutes of swimming before the start. I also took in one of the gatorade prime packets 20 minutes before the race start.
Swim: With water temps in the high 80s the water was even warmer than the outside temps, and was so muddy I literally couldn't see past my goggles. Other than that the swim was great. Just a straight shot w/a slight 45 degree turn to the swim exit. The swim started off with some slight jostling and I got kicked twice probably in the 1st 200m but after that I was able to hold and draft to the person in front of me. I came out in 6 minutes and 59 seconds (one of my best 500m swims).
T1: probably lost a few seconds more than I should have in T1 as I saw some competitors pass me as we headed out onto the bike. Where I then had some trouble getting my feet into my shoes.
Bike: I knew I would have some work to do on the bike and my main goal was just to crush it. Once my feet were in my shoes, I was off. At the first turn around the 2nd place guy was probably 20 seconds back, and at the second turn around I was happy to see that I had put close to a minute between me and the next racer. I finished the bike course in 29:23, which was 30.4 mph. I felt good on the bike and felt like I could have held that pace (or at least close to it for an olympic distance). I really liked my new profile design aero bottle from Austin Tricyclist store. I think it helps. I had Hammer heed on the bike (probably 1/2 a bottle).
T2: Again, I think I could work on my transition time, but I was in and out of T2 with no other racers in site as I headed out on the run.
Run: I've been working on trying to get my turnover quicker and be able to hold a faster pace coming off the bike. As I came up to the 1 mile marker, my watch read 5:17. I was happy with this, as it was even faster than I had planned. Mile 2 it dropped to 5:34, but I was still positive b/c I felt i could hold this pace for the rest of the race and would finish on the podium. Little did I know that behind me were some amazing runners. As I got close to mile 3 I was quickly passed by 2 runners working together. Looking back I should have tried to hop on to their heels, but I didn't. Then, a little past the 3 mile marker, another runner passed me and the 2 other guys in front of me. He went on to win by just 15 seconds in front of second place, and me in 4th just around a minute back from 1st place.
Post race comments: Looking back, I would not have changed my race strategy, but I wish I had known that there were some fast runners in the mix. I think mentally I thought I had won it on the bike and just had to hold on w/a decent run. Also, when I think about it, this race was meant for runners. With such a short swim and bike, they could bluff their way through the swim and bike and still have enough time to make it up on the longish run (for a sprint). In the end, I was the better swimmer and biker, but wasn't able to close it out with the run. It's an important lesson to learn who your racing and what there strengths are. Now its time for recovery and build up to the Austin Tri! Can't wait.
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