My First Tri - Lake Lanier Sprint

My First Tri -  Lake Lanier Sprint Triathlon

400m swim, 12k bike, 5k run

06/06/2010

Total Race Time = 1h 26m 14s

Overall Place = 83/?

Age Group = Male 40-44

Age Group Place = ?

Pre-race:  Didn't get a lot of sleep. I went to bed at 10pm and woke up at 2:30 and couldn't really fall back asleep. Alarm went off at 4am. Had a bowl of cereal and a cup of coffee (I need one cup first thing in the morning). Got dressed and loaded the car (already had everything packed the night before). Was up at Lake Lanier a little after 6am. Got checked in and got my gear laid out. I was a bit concerned since I was volunteering in Macon on Saturday taking pictures and then at the 1 mile water station, so I'd been in the sun all day and not a full night sleep, but I felt good. My goal was to have a good experience for my first race and improve my open water experience (I learned from the mock-tri that I need to work on this). Ran into Fernando & Rodney also ATC beginners and we talked about our expectations.

Warm-up: I went down to the lake and wanted to check water temperature and take a few strokes to convince myself that I could do better on the swim than the mock-tri. Water felt good. Swam a short distance concentrating on my breathing, technique and pace. Enough to make me feel confident about the swim. This race is promoted as swimming in waist deep water along the shore so you can stand if needed. I promised myself that I was not going to stop and stand. If I needed a break I would swim on my back (back stroke).

Swim: I started in the back of the pack. Kept a good steady pace that I didn't realize I had gone past the first buoy and was in deeper water. I need to work on my sighting as I feel I kind of zigzaged along the swim. About halfway I was closer to the shoreline and I started swimming on my back. I gave myself 10 strokes and then proceeded to swim again. I took 2 more breaks swimming on my back, but I never stood up. Got out, felt good and ran to the transition area (felt like it was a 1/4 mile away and a nice steep hill at the end). Not only did I feel better in the water, but I was faster than the mock-tri (I only did 300m in about the same time).

Swim Time: 10m:50s

T1: Ran the whole way to the transition. Went smoothly. I ride & run with socks, if I didn't I'd be faster here. I learned during the mock-tri not to wear cycling gloves as they're hard to put on when your hands are wet. Same goes for socks. I can do without gloves for short distances, not sure that I want to try no socks yet.

T1 Time: 2m:19s

Bike: Felt really good on the bike and I had to remind myself not to empty the tank and save some for the run. Started hydrating right away. I had a mix of gatorade and 1 Nuun tablet. Left Lake Lanier Islands area and got on the road. This was a hilly course but nothing too difficult. There was little traffic, but some cyclist were riding 2 across and almost taking up the whole lane. One time I had to cross to the other lane to pass, luckily there was no oncoming traffic. I had a Cliff Shot around mile 3 and almost finished a whole bottle by the time I was done on the bike. Bike average was 17.67mph

Bike Time: 0h:42m:52s

T2: Quick transition to my running shoes, putting on race belt number & visor. Quick splash of water on my head and was out on the run. This is when I realized I was doing better than I thought. According to the clock I was only 1 hour and 1 minute into the race.

T2 Time: 1m:48s

Run: Legs were not feeling great. I had another Cliff Shot and walked up this short hill while I had the gel. I also brought along a bottle of Gatorade/Nuun mix. This was also a hilly area and I was concerned if I would be able to run the whole way back, especially after running a downhill section. I kept at it and told myself that I would run the whole way and only stop if I experienced any pain. Legs started to feel better on the second half and managed to pass a couple runners and that motivated me to push through that last hill and I even picked up the pace for the last 200 yards.

Run Time: 0h:28m:27s

Post Race: Crossed the finish and grabbed an orange to eat. I didn't really have an appetite and didn't eat anything else.  

What would you do differently: Get more sleep & rest the day before. I didn't feel tired or feel like it affected me, but I also wonder if I would have performed better had I not been on my feet and in the sun all day Saturday. I had a great race and I'm very happy with my results for my first sprint triathlon. I was expecting a time of 1:40:00 or something in that ranged based on what I got during the mock-tri. To finish 1:26:14 really makes me ecstatic since I exceeded my expectation and sets a new base for me to improve on. Overall it was a great experience and has me hooked and looking forward to my next event (Peachtree City). As a beginner, this is a great event and I would recommend it to any first timer. 

I still need to work on the swim and will be attending any/all open water clinics. This is my weakest part and where I can improve the most.

All I can say is I'm hooked on triathlons and don't know why it took me so long to do my first.