Strawberry Fields Olympic Distance Tri 7-19-09

Updated race results:

Overall: 126th/286 (middle of pack)

Swim: 252th, 53:00 / 1500m / 2:55 pace. <- Long course for sure - top swimmers were 2:00+

T1: 2:55 (middle of pack)

Bike: 72th, 1:03:10, 23.6 mph

T2: 1:22 (middle of pack)

Run: 38th, 42:50, 6:53/mi

Today I completed my first ever Olympic distance triathlon. I entered this race only 2 weeks ago, as I felt that I needed some race experience to fine tune my training, so I did no special race preparation for this race. Unfortunately, my lack of preparation showed in spades today, as things didn't turn out anywhere near as well as I had hoped, but on the bright side, I now know what things I really need to prioritize in training to improve.

Cody Westheimer, friends and myself. Before they both smoked me in the water

This was an exceptionally organized race held in Oxnard, Ventura right on beachside. It is the same beach where you can catch boats out to the Channel Islands, so I've been here before. I left Santa Monica at the ungodly hour of 4AM for a 7AM race start, and that was actually the perfect amount of time for preparation, as I arrived at the locale at 5AM. Registration pickup was a breeze, with computer validation of entry, a tightly run transition area with your own rack area with your race number affixed to your area, and great race support all along the course. A very well run, professionally done race, in my opinion. I would definitely do this one again in the future.

THE SWIM - I'M STILL TERRIBLE

If there's one thing that sticks out like a sore thumb on all my tris so far, it's undoubtedly my horrendous swim performances. I was hoping that this time around, with my improved stroke, new wetsuit, and open water training experience, that I would have a real shot at a MOP (middle of pack) swim finish, but once again, I was proven wrong with yet another BOP (back of pack) finish.

I'm so far back already that I'm not even in the picture

The swim course was likely long today, as everyone in my age group finished 10+ minutes slower than their usual swim time. This was extremely disheartening for me, when I looked at my watch halfway through the swim and realized that I was already exceeding the time I was hoping to finish the entire swim by. Regardless of the distance, I'm still a truly lousy swimmer, as I was completely unable to keep pace with the pack of swimmers in my age group, and I was rapidly caught by waves of swimmers behind me. I never struggled at any point in the swim, but I had a very difficult time sighting the buoys amongst the waves and the people, and for sure, this slowed my pace down substantially. My final time for an alleged 1500m swim was 52+ minutes (!!) - I was definitely not this spectacularly slow, as I never needed to pause or rest en route, but I was flat out back-of-pack for sure in my AG. It was another disappointing transition to the bikes as I noticed that nearly all the bikes were again gone by the time I arrived. I estimate that I lost nearly 15-20 minutes to a MOP swimmer in my age category, which pretty much destroyed any chance I had of having a decent showing in the race.

Update: To put it in hard results of how spectacularly badly I'm swimming, I finished 21st/22nd in my AG in this race. Even WORSE than my first race where my wetsuit didn't fit properly and I had to backfloat for part of the race. What the heck happened out there? I know the obvious answer is that I have a glaring deficiency in my stroke, but I can't identify it at all. Swim coach, here I come...

THE BIKE - 2 BATHROOM BREAKS. WTF!?

If I look like I'm struggling, it's only because I needed a bathroom break - badly!

I was honestly expecting my bike split to be the strongest of my splits in this race, as the bulk of my training has been on the bike, including 6 hour long hellaciously hilly rides and sprints with the local bike club. This wasn't my day, however. The moment I mounted my bike, I really had to go the the bathroom. As well, I was really mentally disheartened by my terrible swim. After riding for about 10 minutes, I simply had to stop to relieve myself on the side of the road. I jumped back on the bike, hoping to make up some time, and I was averaging 22-23 miles per hour at a not-too-hard pace with comfortable breathing on a dead-flat course. Yet 30 minutes later, I had to go to the bathroom AGAIN. Unbelievable. This never happens to me in training; I suspect that a combination of the cold ocean water plus some ingested salt water on the swim led me to have some strange bladder issues. After two complete bathroom breaks requiring full unclipping, I was in no mood to hammer the bike. I kept it comfortable (but not easy), while maintaining a speed of 21ish miles per hour, which was enough to continue passing lots of people but not anywhere near what I would consider a strong effort for me on the bike. I also noted that my strength is definitely climbing hills now; on the 2 small roller hills on the course, I disproportionately passed lots of riders. Granted, I crank up the effort when a hill presents itself, but for sure, I feel more comfortable hammering on a hill incline than I do in aero position on a flat course. This is something I will have to address on my midweek rides, which may have to be geared at developing a fast cadence and power on a flat, steady course.

THE RUN - NOT BAD

I was dreading the run at this point, as my bike didn't feel right at all, and my runs as of late have been ridiculously slow and plodding. I had another ungainly transition, with race officials yelling at me to roll to a complete stop, which I fully did, but apparently I didn't slow enough, as they were all up in arms right before I came to a stop right at the line that they indicated. I was in full control and knew I could stop, but I guess my technique is unconventional, so I need to change it for the future.

For some reason I look a lot more comfortable running...

I started the run intending to just finish the race decently, and not hammer it. My legs felt surprisingly lousy off the bike, and without my Garmin to tell me my pace, I had no idea how fast I was running, but it felt reall slow. Almost immediately, I was passed by 2 guys near in my age group, and I felt that they were moving fast enough that they'd drop me within 200 meters with no return. I was in a pretty bad mood at this point - nothing was working out as I had planned. The run was a 2-loop flat course, and fortunately, I felt better and better as the run progressed. I went through the first 5k in 22:00ish, which is actually on target with my expected pace. I gradually accelerated through the second 5k as I felt better and better, and got it up to race pace by mile 5, which was near 7 minutes/mile. By then, I was in full passing mode, and nobody on the course was remotely close to keeping up with me this far back from the front. I also managed to catch the 2 guys who passed me from the get-go, and dropped them for good in the final half mile. I actually had a good amount of gas at the end for a hard pickup, likely accumulated from my relatively mellower bike. I timed myself through the 10k at about 43 minutes, which is pretty much exactly what I thought I would run on a good day. At least something turned out right. Whew.

FUTURE PLANS

I now have about 2 and a half months prior to my real target triathlons, the LA Olympic distance and the Malibu Olympic distance triathlons. I am making some big changes to my weekday workout routines, which will cut back on running/cycling volume and replace it with swim workouts, which will hopefully become my new #1 priority. Until I can manage a MOP swim, no amount of performance on the bike or run will allow for a reasonably fast finish for me. With luck, I'm hoping for 4 swims per week, with speedwork on at least 2 of those sessions. No pain, no gain. I admit that I dislike swim training, but that is more of a function of the suboptimal pool that I train in which is a short 20meter pool in Ballys, which makes distance swimming difficult. It's also not a pretty place to swim. Regardless, it's time for me to HTFU on the swim, and get serious about it.

Cycling and running will have at least one weekly speedwork session, like it or not. I have been neglecting speed in both, and it showed on a short race such as today's race. I will be back on the gym bike once per week to hammer on the wattage to make sure I can ride as hard and as fast on flats as I do on the hills. I also will be doing a weekly tempo run with a local running group to increase my leg speed.

I admit that I'm somewhat disappointed in this race, mainly because of my still-horrendous swim. I could have been lousy on the bike/run, but if the swim went even half-decent, I would have considered today a successful race day. I guess you live and learn though, and I've now got a true Olympic distance triathlon under my belt, and I know for sure that I can swim the mile in open water without drowning, stopping, or undue distress. This race is a good kick in the rear for me though, and expect some serious changes in my workouts to get ready for the next race.