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July 25, 2005
Heart of the Lakes Triathlon
The Heart of the Lakes Triathlon took place on Sunday July 17th. The day was hot and muggy. When I woke up at 5:30 it was already 78 degrees with 90% humidity. During the 40 minute drive to Annandale, my bike collected a fine mist of dew on it from the humidity in the air. The distance of the race was: 1/2 Mile Swim, 21 mi. Bike, and 5.3 mi. Run.
The transition area was pretty long and I was set-up with a preassigned rack near the back. It was good in that I could get to my bike quickly out of the swim, but I had a ways to go to get out on the bike and transition back in for the run.
The swim started in waves with about 30 people per wave based on age. I had a great swim, I kept my line and sighted well througout. I came out in 13th place only about a minute behind those who would win my age group. The swim took me 14:39 to complete the swim.
T1 went o.k. I had an issue getting my helmet and shoes on and got through in 2:08.
Considering the wind and the heat, the bike went very well. The course was relatively flat, but had a few good climbs. The wind kicked up from the side, back and head-on throughout. I passed every single person I could and never got passed. I completed the bike in 52:26 with an average speed of 24 mph!
T2 was great. I came with my feet out of the shoes and standing on one pedal. I was able to hop off the bike and straight into the run to my T2 just before the dismount line. As I was coming I saw Curt and Patrick just heading out on the run. That meant that I had gained back all by 20 seconds or so on the bike from them. I got my shoes on and headed straight out to the run.
The run is where all hell broke lose for me. I had a decent mile, but could tell right away that I had very little juice left in the legs. I attribute this to my lack of fluid replacement on the bike. While I downed a bottle of water, I should have downed some gatorade or other sports drink. I was lacking sugar and sodium due to the heat. The run grinded on and I struggled to keep pace. I was slowing to an 8:30 + place vs. the 6:49 pace of my last triathlon. I cruised through the first few water stops with only water vs. taking the gatorade. Why I did that I do not know. Near the end I started drinking gatorade and immediately felt the effects. My last mile I was able to endure and pass several competitors as I turned it up in the finishing blocks. I completed the run in 45:25 a 8:35 pace. Not bad for a training run but horrible for a race. I placed 18th in the age group, 57th in the males, and 95th overall (out of a 1,000).
T1
2:08
T2
1:39
Total: - 1:56:10
Posted by kermisch at 08:32 PM