speedvegan

Time 2:54:54 | Overall 53/90 | Gender 8/18 | Age Group 1/3

First of all, I must give a shout out to my friend and fellow triathlete Ian Moss, who I stole this awesome race report format from.

Once again, I decided to do an Olympic distance triathlon before my Half Iron triathlon next month to test my nutrition plan, equipment and to gauge which areas need fine-tuning. This was only my second Olympic race but it was so much better than my first experience with this distance. I was a nervous wreck going into it but it all went smoothly in the end. I even managed to set a new PR !

The weather was perfect this morning – about 70F and threatening to hit a whopping 83 degrees later in the day. It’s been like this for the last few weeks and I hope it will stay this way through to my Half Iron race. The water temps were 76 degrees making it wetsuit legal. I saw a few people with wetsuits which is quite a site in Florida. I wore my Organic Athlete tri suit which I plan to use in the Half Iron. It’s comfy and has pockets. The only downside is that it’s the same colors as the University of Miami suits and spectators shout “GO CANES !” as I run past.

SWIM | 1500m | 39:29

It’s no secret that swimming and I don’t get along. I almost feel comfortable saying that now, but it still bugs me. One, there is nothing wrong with my lung capacity. Two, I have the endurance. And three, I have the strength. I just don’t have the technique down and lack speed. Truth be told, I’ve never liked swimming and chances are I never will. What I’m trying to say is, I may always suck at swimming because I don’t like it enough to work hard at it, especially since there are two other disciplines to train for. I’m also a known masochist, so anything can happen.

This was an ocean swim in the bay which is sort of sheltered but not always immune to strong currents. Normally, the sprint distance events at this venue are point to point. However, today’s longer swim was out and back so we got to deal with a strong current for half of the swim. The current actually pushed me away from the buoys a bit so I ended up swimming an extra few hundred meters. Just call me “overachiever.” Right. My goal for this swim (apart from meeting the cut off) was to finish in 40-45 minutes. I understand that is NOT a lofty goal, but this is me we’re talking about. I’m the girl with a 1:03ish Half Iron distance swim in my record. It fills me with a glee to think that my time could have been faster if not for the current, though probably not by much. Still, a girl can dream.

Nutrition: gel and water 10 minutes prior to start

T1 | 3:38

Nap time ! No, not really. This time actually includes an almost quarter mile run, mostly on sand, from the swim exit to transition.

BIKE | 40km | 1:19:48

Since I don’t do too many Olympic races or even ride this distance during training rides, I don’t quite know how to pace myself over 40km. It’s something I have to work on. I went out too slowly and didn’t push myself enough when I could have. It was a two loop course with strong headwinds coming out of transition. I kept my revolutions high but didn’t use a big enough gear. Finally, on the last leg back to transition, I cranked hard but there wasn’t enough distance left at that point to improve my average. Now I’m going to throw a wrench in that theory. Apparently, I failed to empty my bladder completely prior to riding off. It was almost painful and all I could think about for the first loop. This may have had something to do with my lack of speed, or not. Who knows ? I’m not happy with my time, but can only look forward now.

Nutrition: one mini Cliff bar at start of bike leg, one gel half way through, water throughout

T2 | 1:35

I arrived at transition to find my rack nearly full. Also, some inconsiderate jerk had dumped his bike and miscellaneous crap all over my area. Thankfully, there was another guy a rack over who helped move the bike so that I could fit mine in. He was a star and I should have looked more carefully to see what his number was so that I could thank him again later. I need to work on that as well.

RUN | 10km | 50:24

The run was uneventful. I had a hard time sticking to my pace during the first 2 miles, but kept it pretty consistent after that. I had to hit the gas during the last mile, though, in order to finish in my goal time. Even though I did, I think I could have had a better run if I’d kept a consistent pace throughout. I just don’t think I pushed myself as hard as I could have during those first 2 miles. That said, I am now a bit more confident about the run portion of my upcoming Half Iron race.

Nutrition: gel and water at mile 2, energy drink at mile 5

Overall, I am happy with my performance today. It’s hard to tell what should “feel right” at this distance since I don’t do it often enough. So, I look forward to signing up for more Olympic distance triathlons in the future and to setting a new PR.