Trifreaks is the organizer of the Grand Columbian Triathlon. The race is low key, but honest and filled up with athletes wanting to race hard but have fun at the same time. I hope more athletes will show up next year, this race deserve more racers.
The area around the Grand Coulee Dam is quite amazing.
And of course the dam
Swim:
This must be the most athlete friendly swim in triathlon. The water is clear and best of all, the organizer has a sight line between the buoys. Yes, you can keep your head down and just swim. Another perk is wave start, good job Trifreak.
My goal was to start in a controlled manner and focus on keeping a good form all the way. I have to say I succeed, I felt strong the whole way and had a positive experience. I tried to be as flat as possible in the water so my hamstrings had to work hard, more on that later.
Swim time: 33 minutes (not bad to be me)
Bike:
The bike course is hard and the road surface is not exactly smooth. Out of T1 you have 10 feet of flat road before you start climbing. The course also have a lot of false flats. Overall it was a great course.
My coach Tony DeBoom came up with the following challenge: Bike hard, really push it and then we will see what happen on the run. Trust me, something happen on the run.....
I did manage to start in a controlled manner. It was a lot of climbing in the start but I pushed hard but not too hard. I kept the effort up until it was 20 miles left, then I really start pushing. My legs did not feel good, my hamstrings were tight and they felt just a little heavy. But I am really happy with my effort, I pushed through on a not so perfect day.
Bike time: 2.59
Run:
I tried to start slow, it was not easy but I managed quite well. The run went really well until half way. 10 meters after the turnaround my right hamstring start cramping. I stretched and tried to focus on high turnover. It went OK until I had 4 kilometer left. My legs had started to pay the price for not feeling fresh before start and for pushing hard on the bike. Before the last hill I got some coke and then I start walking up the hill. Running up was out of the question. At the top of the hill I was looking forward to cruise down to the bridge, then both my legs started to cramp up. I started laughing since my running form now looked like a two year old in diapers. Well I managed to get to the finish line and then I sat down and did not move for a while. Without the problems in the end I would have been around 1.48.
Running time: 1.53
Result:
I ended up 5 in my class and 13 overall.
Conclusion:
I am satisfied with the race. I could have been better with nutrition, I could have made sure to get a massage the week before so my legs would feel better and I could have hold back on the bike. I pushed hard on the bike and felt the results on the run. It is important to get to know my own body and this was quite a learning experience. But most of all, I had FUN.
Garmin file run
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/223719082
Garmin file bike
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/223719077
The big question, how long will this stay on?
No comments:
Post a Comment