2012 Race on the Base Reverse Triathlon

2012 Los Alamitos Race on the Base Reverse Triathlon

Los Alamitos Race on the Base Reverse Triathlon – Saturday, February 25, 2012

Los Alamitos, CA

Race Totals

RUN: 23:50 (6:26 per mile avg.)

BIKE: 35:41 (22 mph avg.) 

SWIM: 4:06

First triathlon of 2012! Man I was excited. Been looking forward to get going all fall and winter. Off-season was great. Got a lot of good training under my belt and got a lot of new race gear for this season. I am still learning a lot and still have a lot of room for improvement. I invested in a brand new triathlon specific bike, triathlon cycling shoes, aerodynamic helmet, a GPS enabled multi-sport watch, and a professional bike fit. This can be an inexpensive sport or it can be an expensive sport. My love for competition and new high tech gear made me choose the expensive route. So that’s a little recap of my off-season, now on to my race report for the 2012 RACE ON THE BASE REVERSE TRIATHLON.

PRE RACE

This race was a REVERSE triathlon, so instead of swimming first, we RUN first and end with the swim. Which is different for me because I never train that way, and I found out those differences today. Also, during the off-season I have been training aerobically (slow) to build endurance, and since this race is short it is an all out effort. So going fast is something I haven’t been used to. Nonetheless, I was confident I could have a good race. It is a SPRINT distance race, which is a short race. Sprint races are usually a ½ mile swim or less, around 12 mile bike, and around a 3-4 mile run. To be competitive, it is an all out effort. It is also so short that it is the perfect distance for newbies doing their first triathlon.

RACE DAY EVE DINNER: Whole wheat pasta with chicken, marinara sauce. Chocolate milk

Race Day- 7:00am Half of a plain bagel with 1 tbsp of peanut butter, a PR bar, and a cup of black coffee. (Approx. 450 calories)

8:45 Arrived at transition. Sipping on 1 scoop of GU electrolyte brew (50 calories)

9:30 Race briefing.  GU energy gel (100 calories)

10:10 Race Start WAVE 1

RUN (3.7 miles)

I positioned myself right in the front. Even though my legs felt a bit heavy, I started off at a blazing 5:30 mile pace for the first half of the first mile, I then slowed a little and ended up running a 5:53 mile 1. I was feeling good but then at the 1.5 mile point my right shoelace came untied (Haven’t installed my Yankz lacing system yet)! So I stopped for a few seconds to tie it.  When something like that happens, it could play on you mentally.  I was frustrated it happened but I only worried about it for a few seconds. Not happy about that but still got back in my groove and ran a 6:41 mile 2.  I noticed the guys in front of me slowing so instead of trying to pass them, I played it safe and kept my pace because I was confident I could handle them on the bike and plus I saved a bit of energy. I ran a 6:48 mile 3. Less than a mile to go I kept my pace and headed into transition. Time to race my bike for the first time ever!


MILE 1- 5:53
MILE 2- 6:41
MILE 3- 6:48

Run Nutrition Few sips of water (0 Calories) LOL

Run Total  23:50 (6:26 per mile avg.)

T1 (Run to Bike Transition)- 1:25

Bike (13.1 miles) 3 Laps

My new Felt and I have logged in a lot of miles over the past few months but this was the first time I raced with it. I was very excited! Add a matching aero helmet and I felt like a pro. I went out on the bike feeling GREAT. During the first lap I caught some guys that outran me. I caught some more guys on the second lap. But during this second lap, my calves started cramping. As I mentioned before, I never train this way (Run to Bike), my muscles weren’t used to that so I'm pretty sure that’s the reason. I fought through the cramps a bit and was still maintaining a fast pace. I got into a nice rhythm saving a bit of energy for my last lap. A few miles away from the 3^rd lap start, some guys passed me and one of them was drafting off of him (Drafting is a violation). I don’t like cheaters so I was pretty frustrated. I yelled out in a stern tone “HEY! No Drafting!” The guy immediately backed off. The competitiveness in me came out and my calf cramps went away. I passed the cheater and powered through the third lap and headed to transition. Saw only 1 bike racked in my age group racks so I was pretty pumped. Time to Swim.

I must note that I enjoyed the lap system because for that reason it was very spectator friendly. Everyone was cheering me on and I heard a few “GO LB TRI!” out there. Very supportive and that kept me pushing hard. There were also bands out there playing music, that was pretty cool too.

Bike Nutrition One GU Energy Gel and One bottle of 2 scoops GU electrolyte brew (200 calories)

Bike Total 35:41 (22mph avg.)

T2- 1:36   Okay, so another mishap occurred. As I unstrapped out of my shoes and dismounted, I was running with my bike to transition and my shoe hit the ground and clipped out. I had to run back a few feet to go get it. That took about 10 seconds…

Swim (200 meters)

Not much to say about the swim except I was already tired with cramping legs. So my form was terrible. I powered out the four laps and went up the steps and finished the race.

Swim Nutrition Couple gulps of pool water HAHA (How many calories in chlorine?)

Swim Total 4:06

Race Total

1:06:41

2^nd M 19-24

21^st Overall

Post Race

Finishers Medal and 2nd Place AG medal

In front of the chopper

Lessons learned

Some things I would change would be the shoelace thing. I haven’t installed my quick lace ties for my shoes which you just pull to tie and won’t come undone. That would have saved me a few seconds.

Add more intensity to my training program.

Not too sure how to fix my shoe hitting the ground at T2. That would have saved me more time.

Overall, I am very pleased with my performance. It was the type of race that I don’t train for but still came out with positive results.

Upcoming training

One more month of training for Ironman CA in Oceanside. Got some long rides and runs planned these next few weeks. I will also be building up my courage to get some open water ocean swims in. I hear it’s COLD. Gotta stay focused.  1 more month!

Next race

                                                                                                   March 31st, 2012