Westboro Sprint Triathlon Race Report

On August 15th I raced at the Westboro Sprint Triathlon in Westboro, MA.  Once again this was close enough to my parent's house to enable them to spectate and I also was lucky enough to have my personal race sherpa/photographer in attendance.  This was a 1/4 mile swim, 14 mile bike and 2.9 mile run format.  The bike course was mostly flat, with the exception of one moderate hill and a few short but steep hills right before T2.  The run course was half trails and half road, with a finish across the soccer fields.  This was also the first year the race had been held.  The race was held at one of MA's finest abandoned mental hospitals - very creepy.  The weather was cooler then recent races and it was a comfortable 60 for race time.

 

Also a change from the last few races was that I was in the second to last wave which meant plenty of traffic on course.  For the swim I decided to get a little more aggressive as I was thinking this race would play out similar to the Hockomock race.  I didn’t want to get trapped in traffic.  I figure it's time for me to start more towards the front as my times for these sprint races have been consistent.  I started right on the front row, on the inside half of the line.  Wow.  What a difference being in the front.  The wrestling match was crazy.  Lots of kicks, punches and people trying to swim over me.  Lots more contact in the initial few strokes.  Nothing I couldn't deal with but it was definitely more noticeable then starting further outside or towards the back. 

 

There I am in the top middle fighting with some other swimmers:

On the plus side, it gave me a better line and less traffic to the buoy.  That's me with the wetsuit on the left of both the below pictures.  Notice the floaters from the previous wave and the traffic coming in from the outside towards the first turn, while I am swimming straight at it.

 

        

Hit the beach with the exact same swim time as Hockomock, 6:57, which put me 4th in my age group and in the top 10% overall.  Was pleased as I didn't really feel like I swam very hard - just a nice controlled rhythm.  Both transitions has very long chutes in and out and T1 was steeply uphill from the lake and then another steep uphill from the soccer field to the road.  That spiked the heart rate. 

 

Once on the bike it was still uphill to the first turn.  Here's a shot getting going after the mounting line.

 

The below pic is right at the first turn.  I like the guy waving goodbye to us.  Notice the guy on the yellow bike.  He followed me around the entire bike course; you can see him again on the second picture still right behind me.  He ended up finishing second in my age group, obviously due to a fast run. 

My bike was great, I really liked the course.  Very flat up to the 11 mile mark and then a few quick hills towards the end.  I really felt good on the bike but saw a lot of blatant drafting around me.  A group of 10 guys tried to roll by me.  I called them out for being a bunch of cheaters and then attacked in anger up the next hill - never saw them again.  I ended up coming off the bike 2nd in my age group.  This was my fastest bike of the year and also my best placing, also inside the top 10% overall.

 

Here are some shots of me approaching T2.  The marshal was not impressed with my speed:

Had a quick transition, but again the timing mat was way down a chute so the time looks slow.  Right out of transition it was literally into the middle of a cornfield on a rocky trail.  The trail was narrow and uneven, so not good for any speed.  However, the other runners from early waves kept me motivated as I was passing some slower runners and not getting passed by many.  After the run through the cornfield, we circled the lake on a trail that was slightly uphill.  I was holding between 8 and 8:30 pace on my offroad adventure.  At about the halfway mark we got on pavement and I was able to accelerate.  Knowing there was only about a mile and a half left, I decided to see how fast I could go.  I was able to hold around 7:30 pace the rest of the way.

 

Entering the soccer fields with about 300 yards remaining, I saw this guy behind me trying to outsprint me.  I was already at my limit from running harder for the last 1.5 miles and couldn't sprint much faster - only at about 6:20 pace for the last quarter mile.  He was able to catch and pass me.  Two races in a row this has happened.  Unlike at Marlboro this was a loss of position in my age group.  Very frustrating to lose a position by just 6 seconds.  I guess I'm not much of a sprinter running - which is interesting because I always used to have a very good sprint on the bike.

 

 

I beat my expected overall time by about 2.5 minutes, mostly due to a faster bike and run then I was forecasting.  This was also my fastest run in a race, at 7:41 average pace.  This led to a breakout performance for me, as I almost made the top 10% overall at the finish.  Knowing I started the run in 2nd place was also a best for the year.  I was only passed by 5 guys in my age group on the run.

 

I thought it was a well run race, particularly given that it was in its first year.  I loved the bike course, but the run would be a disaster if it was not dry conditions.  The parking was pretty far from the actual finish line area which led to a lot of walking for my spectating crew.  The run finish in a wide open bowl was good for watching the conclusion of the race.

 

Here are the final stats for the race:

 

	Time	Distance	Pace	AG Place	%	Overall Place	%
# Entries				31		316
Swim	6:57	1/4 mile	1:35/100 yd	4	13%	32	10%
T1	2:17			9	29%	59	19%
Bike	39:46	14 miles	21.12 mph	5	16%	27	9%
T2	1:19			9	29%	39	12%
Run	22:18	2.9 miles	7:41/mile	16	52%	84	27%
Total	1:12:35			7	23%	34	11%

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2010 Ironman Timberman 70.3 by Rico

My preparation leading up to the race was a bit unconventional, I had just completed the Bronx Half Marathon and biked 50 miles the weekend before rather than taper. Also spent Thursday and Friday ALL DAY on my feet visiting Mystic Seaport/Aquarium and Six Flags New England before finally arriving to New Hampshire with Regina, the kids and our adopted step child Mike Kimelman.

The temps felt perfect for race day, low 70s with overcast. I was hoping the rain would not hit but eventually did mid way through the bike. The Pros started at 7am with my wave starting at 7:50. The swim start was crowded and I took an unusually high volume of kicks and elbows for the first quarter mile. My sighting was not the best but overall was happy to see my time of 44:06.

I quickly got into an easy rhythm on the bike, I had planned to bike based on a heart rate of 85% rather than just hammering away to maximize my MPH. My watch was not reading my heart rate nor my speed, so I was left to use perceived exertion to base my pace. For the first 15 miles I kept what felt like a sustainable pace as though I was doing a full ironman. I than picked up the pace slightly and when I hit mile 25 I was feeling strong. I decide to once again pick up the pace and really start working hard but keeping it comfortably hard (if that makes any sense). I wish I had the stats on my heart rate but when I got off the bike, I felt strong with energy in the tank for the run. Despite what I thought was a slower pace I realized that I still managed to finish with a strong bike split of 2hrs 50min flat or 19.8MPH on what was a hilly bike course. Starting the bike split slowly and not getting to cocky or letting ego take over was paying off.

I lost a little bit of time in T2 as I accidently ran down the wrong isle and struggle to find my transition spot. My sneakers and socks were soaked due to the rain but by the start of the run the rain had stopped.

At the start of the run I was immediately in the right place mentally. I was feeling happy with my bike split and had energy to spare. At this point I knew as long as I didn’t fall apart I was going to have a shot at a PR. The first mile marker came quickly, Before I really knew it I was already at mile 4 and still feeling no pain. I though about pushing harder but I was on track for a PR by keeping at my current pace. There is still a long way to go and anything could happen. I hit mile 7 and realized I was feeling the same as I did during my first mile, no breaking down. Typically by this point I am hating the sport, cursing myself out and claiming to never registering for another race again. Instead I was smiling and feeling like I couldn’t be having a better time right now. When I hit mile 10 I finally felt the effects with my legs feeling heavy but by this time I was on such a high and feeling great about my race that It would take more than heavy legs to slow me down, I kept the same pace right to the finish line. I passed a lot of people in the last three miles of the run, that’s how I knew I was having a great race, I generally never pass anybody in the last three miles of a half ironman. This time it was me who was doing the passing right to the finish line with a half marathon time of 2:00:51 and overall finish of 5:40:01 (11 minutes faster than California). I finished strong and even got slightly emotional about it for 10 seconds and smiled the rest of the day.

They say almost everyone shows up to race physically ready to race but 80-90% of the field does not know how to execute a race, I believe that comment to be dead right. A successful race = a good run. There is no such thing as a good bike followed by a bad run. That usually means you messed up on your bike which means you had a bad bike. I proved that to be the case this weekend with a PR and feeling stronger at the finish line than any race I have done.

Thanks to Mike Kimelman for really pushing me to go do this event, and of course special thanks to my wonderful girlfriend Regina and the kids for being my number one fans and doing so in the rain.

Rico

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Marlboro Triathlon Race Report

August 1st I raced at the Marlboro Triathlon in MA.  This is a race that is organized by Jarrod Shoemaker who is one of the top ITU distance triathletes in the US.  This connection meant a bunch of elite racers were in attendance – including Ethan Brown.  Ethan took the win, which is not surprising since he finished 5th at the NYC Triathlon which was stacked with talent.  The race was a 1/3 swim, 15 mile bike and a 3.4 mile run.  Interestingly it also had a two transition zone setup.  I was thinking the 3 lap bike course and 2 lap run course, along with T1 on a causeway running along side the swim course, would make an ideal spectator race.  However, the long distance between T1 and T2 made it somewhat of a hassle both from a spectating and setup perspective.  My parents came up to spectate – continuing my run of support at all these races.  Much appreciated.

 

Pre race was stressful as yet again I had issues getting my tires inflated.  The valve somehow seems to close between races.  With the deep rims and tubular tires, it makes it impossible for me to fix on site.  Luckily the onsite mechanics once again rescued me, as I was about to rifle my wheel into the woods in frustration.  Unfortunately the scrambling with my wheel left me unable to get the camera setup properly and therefore the pictures came out “artistic” and very overexposed.  These are the only ones that are even discernable, but I added links to the professional photographers at the bottom.

 

Once again I was in the first wave after the elite men, which gave me a nice wide open swim.  Unfortunately, I probably had my worst swim of the year as I lined up on the right (or outside) side at the swim start.  With the counterclockwise swim, and right side breathing I had really poor sighting.  I swam a lot of extra distance to the first turn.  Once I was heading for shore I was able to get into a little draft and swim straight for the swim exit.  I still managed to finish around the top 1/5 of the field.

 

T1 was set up on a causeway through the middle of the lake, with the bikes racked in descending order down the road.  This was a larger race with nearly 400 people, and I was number 75 so I had a very long run down the transition area to my bike – in fact it was nearly back past the turn buoy on the swim – about 300 yards.  Then about another 100 yards to the mount line – quite a long transition, but I was glad I didn’t have a higher number that would have meant dragging the bike further.

 

Shots of T1:

The bike course was a 3 lap affair with 1 long climb and 2 shorter ones each lap.  I felt good on the bike and was able to put time on a lot of racers on the uphills.  I also really drilled the downhills where a lot of people were being very tentative.

 

Here is a shot on the causeway.  I was breaking the speed limit by about 10mph here:

“Artistic” side shot:

 

On the second lap, I was passed by Ethan Brown who cranked by me on an uphill, in his aero tuck, like I was standing still.  Amazing how fast the pros go.  As the laps wore on the course filled up with the later starting waves, but it never got too crowded.  I was pretty pleased with my bike split.

 

Had a very quick T2.  On an overall basis it was my fastest of the year versus the entire field – just 44 seconds and in the top 10%.

 

The run was another tough course for me.  It was a 2 lap course with a half mile false flat out of transition, followed by a steep quarter mile hill, then a flat half mile, finishing up with a gradual downhill half mile to the end of the lap.  I did a pretty good job of keeping my pace around 8 min miles on the false flats and flats, but dropped a lot of time on the uphills.  The crowd around the finish line, combined with the slight downhill, got my pace down to around 7 min miles at the end of each of the laps.  All told, I averaged 8:10 miles which was just off New London’s pace but this was a much hillier course.  I was pipped at the line by a runner who outsprinted me.  I didn’t see him coming but the announcer said my name and that someone was trying to run me down.  I tried to accelerate but I was only steps from the line and I was caught.  Some of the run finish photos show the awkward strides – kind of funny.

 

I was pretty happy with my results, as I performed pretty well in a high quality field.  I got inside the top 20% overall and top 1/3 of my age group for the first time.  I liked the bigger race and multi-lap format for the sprint race.  However, the logistics of the 2 transitions and the hilly run course make this race a question mark for next year.  Next year I will probably be more selective in my racing and try to race my strengths – hilly runs is not currently one of them.

 

Here are the professional pics (need to click on this link first for some reason to see the rest):

http://www.capstonephotostore.com/search.php?eventnum=363

 

T1:

T1

 

Bike:

1  2  3  4  5  6

 

Run Lap 1:

1  2

 

Run Lap 2:

1  2

 

Run Finish:

1  2  3  4  5  6 

 

And here are the final stats:

 

	Time	Distance	Pace	AG Place	%	Overall Place	%
# Entries				27		395
Swim	9:03	1/3 mile	1:33/100 yd	8	30%	83	21%
T1	2:58			11	41%	131	33%
Bike	44:47	15 miles	20.1 mph	8	30%	65	16%
T2	0:44			5	19%	38	10%
Run	27:45	3.4 miles	8:10/mile	17	63%	147	37%
Total	1:25:16			9	33%	73	18%

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Amica New London 19.7 Race Report

On July 25th I raced at the Amica 19.7 held at Ocean Beach New London.  This race was part of a new nationwide series put on by Amica that runs standard length sprint races, with half mile swims, 16.1 mile bikes and 3.1 mile runs.  The race was well run and felt like a much higher profile event, despite the short distance.

 

Slept exceptionally poorly for the first time this year the night before and was very concerned about being able to race on nearly no sleep.  However, Rico had decided to come up and spectate to it was time to suit up and hope for the best. 

 

A shot of the pre race “coaches meeting” with Rico on the way to the water.  Note the wet boardwalk.

Further discussions regarding the swim:

Started in the first wave after the elites.  Started again on the side I felt lined up best with the buoys, in the 3rd row or so.  That’s me right in the center of the picture breathing to the right. 

Was keeping a steady pace on the swim, which was 340 yards out, 200 across and 340 back in.  In the 200 yard section, I got stung by a jellyfish on the hand.  Wasn’t quite as bad as I was thinking it might be – kind of felt like a mild bee sting.  Given the number of jellyfish I saw in the water I considered myself lucky to only get stung once.

 

Turning toward shore, I hugged the buoys while many people went really wide.  That me right next to the top of the large buoy, making a black upside down V.

Closer shot near shore:

Exited the water, well ahead of my forecasted pace.  I’m swimming about 10-15 sec/100 yards faster with the wetsuit (and in a race) then in the pool.  Came out of the water in 14:22 for the half mile which put my top 1/4 of the field overall.  Not my best performance and I didn’t feel like it was my strongest swim in a race.  I need to smooth out my sighting strokes to gain a little time.

Up across the beach to T1 and I fumbled with my shoe and locating my gel packet.  Rico shot a video of T1 which showed that something that simple cost me 15 seconds.  However, looking at the video I also noticed many people running with their wetsuit fully zipped into T1 and just beginning to undo it at their bike.  I have mine down to my waist by then, so maybe a wash overall.

 

Then right after the timing mat at the T1 exit, I slipped on that wet boardwalk.  The combination of bike cleats and and wet wood doesn’t work.  No damage to the bike but ended up with a pretty banged up knee.

 

The bike course was pretty technical with lots of turns.  However, it was also very scenic with some stretches right along the shore.  It had a few rollers and also a half mile long hill that was steep enough to require my easiest gear.  I was caught off guard a little by how lumpy the course was – I was expecting a little flatter right at the coast.  I kept a pretty steady effort and again finished in about the top half of my age group and top quarter of the overall field.  Time for the 16 miles was 47:23.

 

Here are some nice shots cranking towards T2:

Then it was on to the run.  I started off quickly, as usual, out of transition and worked to bring my pace to a sustainable level.  Was still running quick by the support crew:

Just after this I ran into my usual demons at the 3/4 mile mark.  This time I was able to keep running through the cramp, taking some comfort in knowing that it is usual pretty temporary.  I was then settled in at my 8:30ish type pace.  Just after the turn onto the road along the ocean at the 1.4 mile mark, I was passed by the girl pictured below.  She didn’t fly by me, so I tied to up my pace.  I looked at my watch, and she was running a very consistent 7:50 pace.  I find it much easier to run using someone else to pace, so I tagged along behind her.  I was also thinking I hadn’t seen another women on course, so perhaps I could out sprint her and prevent being “chicked”.  As she ran out of gas with about 1/3 of a mile to go, I passed her back and kept going.

 

The finish line was on the boardwalk, now thankfully much drier, right along the beach.  Here’s the finish sequence:

Thanks to the pacing, this was my best run in a triathlon with a 8:05 pace for the 5k which put my top 1/3 overall and again around top half of my age group.  Was really happy with the run and need to keep pushing to see how fast I can really go – particularly in these shorter races.

 

After the finish it was time for a visit with New London’s finest to get my knee cleaned out and bandaged up:

 

My finish put me 10/20 in my age group and 63/293 overall.  Considering the lack of sleep I was pleased, particularly with my run.  I don’t think I had my best swim and bike though, but they weren’t bad by any means.  Interestingly, this is the 3rd triathlon in a row where I finished in exactly the top 22% overall (the others being Hockomock and Webster). 

 

Thanks to Rico for making the trip up and particularly for driving to the race.  That was awesome.  And as always thanks to my photographer and #1 fan for coming out to support.

 

Final stats:

	Time	Distance	Pace	AG Place	%	Overall Place	%
# Entries				20		293
Swim	14:22	1/2 mile	1:39/100 yd	9	45%	71	24%
T1	2:17			11	55%	80	27%
Bike	47:23	16.1 miles	20.4 mph	10	50%	67	23%
T2	1:00			11	55%	102	35%
Run	25:16	3.1 miles	8:05/mile	11	55%	97	33%
Total	1:30:16			10	50%	63	22%

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Pequannock Sprint Tri Race Report

Not much preparation went into this sprint. I viewed it as a fun training day. Woke up at 5:30 am (the worst part of this whole sport) to get to the race on time and get set up in transition. I remembered my bike shoes this time.

There were a lot of beginners at this race, they make it easy for first timers. The sprint I did was 1/4 mile swim, 11 mile bike and 5k run. They also offer a 200 yd swim, 6 mile bike and 2 mile run, a really good way to get introduced to the sport.

There were 9 waves of sprint participants and 2 or 3 waves of the shorter course folks. I was in wave 6 with the rest of my age group.

The swim was basically an out and back in a warm, small lake. I somehow found myself at the front of the beach on the left side right before the start. Normally I hang back on the swim but this time I was at the front, not sure why. I got off to a good start, however I was traffic for the faster swimmers, as expected when I start from the front, so there was the usual contact. I felt decent in the water and after rounding the turn buoy I got into a draft from another guy on my left. I stayed right by his hip for most of the way back, and was comfortable swimming that close to him. I had what was probably my best swim so far. just over 9:00 for the 1/4 mile and short run to transition.

Got off the wetsuit and wiped the sand from my feet, put on the bike shoes and helmet and I was off. I left the aero helmet home for this one. I started to hammer pretty much right away, the course was totally flat so I was doing 21-22 mph pretty much the whole way. I don't know why but I thought the ride was 15 miles, and was pacing my effort for that distance. To my surprise the ride was only 11 miles (although it was advertised as 11 mile ride, still not sure how I got 15 in my head). I averaged 21.8 mph but probably could have gone a little harder, but glad I didn't.

Having held back that little bit on the bike, I felt the best I have on a run after bike. Most of the run was on a trail or access road, not ideal for my sneakers, but it was fine. I felt good, and was able to run comfortably at pace. I pushed a bit the last mile and averaged 8:30 miles for the 5k. Sorry I don't have the split detail Jason would normally provide here.

All in all a good solid race, although a short one it was the best I've felt in any tri event so far.

80th overall out of 413 including the relay teams
full results http://www.compuscore.com/cs2010/aug/peqsprnt.htm

Place Name               Age Sx     Bib  Swim   Pace SwPlc  T1   T1Plc   Bike  MPH BkPlc   T2   T2Plc   Run    Pace RnPlc Finish

80.   Marc Franco          36 M     268   9:17  2:07  179 | 1:09   57 |  30:15 21.8   33 |  :51  114 |  26:20  8:30  157 |1:07:52    

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