Yay, Matt and I finished the PlayTri Sprint Triathlon in Las Colinas (Irving, TX) this morning for Day 1 of the PlayTri Festival.I parked my car in the Williams Square west parking deck and got to the transition area at about 5:40 AM. Unfortunately, there weren't enough volunteers and so there was already a line of athletes waiting for the bike check and body marking.
The weather forecast was not bad (high of 70 and clear skies), but in the early morning, it was still a bit chilly (about 48 degrees) and there was a stiff wind. I was thinking about what I would wear for bike and run and decided that I would probably wear a long-sleeve T-shirt for the bike to cut down on the chill.
Anyway, I met up with Matt in transition and also ran into Charlie (again). In fact, all three of us were in adjacent bike racks (Matt was across the aisle from me).
Here are my results:
- 500m Swim: 9:56 (87th, 1:59/100m)
- T1: 3:25
- 10mi Bike: 30:00 (34th, 20.0 MPH)
- T2: 1:27
- 5K Run: 24:07 (79th, 7:43/mi)
- Total: 1:08:55.7 (8th of 25 Men 35-39; 38th of 136 Men; 49th of 227 Overall)
I think the course may have been a little short - I had 9.73 miles for the bike and 3.03 miles for the run per GPS. But I’m not complaining.
The transition area was quite large. Or at least very long. Probably 40 rows of racks (but not all were used today – maybe they will be all filled up for the Olympic/Half-Iron races tomorrow???)
The swim in Lake Carolyn was decent in terms of the water temperature and quality (not as nasty as I thought it would be), but Matt and I got stuck at the back for the swim and spent the first minute or so doggy-paddling before we could get anywhere quickly. I definitely need to be at the front tomorrow or my swim time will again suffer.
My feet took a pounding with a tough run from the swim exit to transition. It was a fairly long distance (I think the time was tacked onto T1) and a good bit of it is on “bumpy” concrete – but some of it was grass and the transition area was “flat/smooth” concrete.
When I arrived at T1, I was all warmed up from the swim and decided not to take the time to put on a shirt. Luckily, it was not cold enough (or I didn't notice it) during the cycling for me to regret this last-minute decision.
The bike course was a little hillier than I expected. I guess when I drove the course, long-gradual hills weren’t very noticeable. So there were times when I was bitter as I pounded away at the pedals and only got 13-15 MPH as a result. But on the other hand, it was a blast hitting 31-32 MPH on the downhill stretches. Because the women’s swim wave was first, I passed MANY people on the bike and only got passed by 4-5 guys (on nice bikes - yes, I will keep using that excuse :-)
Bike Route: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http://pages.andrien.com/2008-04-12Bike15km657m.kml
The run was pretty good. Mostly flat except for a hill on Colorado Drive and at the entrance/exit to the Campion Trail. We didn’t spend much time/distance at all on the trail for the 5K, but will be doing quite a bit more tomorrow for the 10K. I started off strong with a sub-8:00/mi pace for the first mile, got a little slower in the middle, but finished strongly for a GPS recorded 7:57/mi pace (7:43/mi in the official results). In fact, I was so focused during the last part of the run that I don't even remember seeing the Mustangs of Las Colinas as I passed Williams Square.
Run Route: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http://pages.andrien.com/2008-04-12Run4km880m.kml
Bananas, oranges, bagels, and Accelerade at the finish line. (Tomorrow, we're supposed to get hamburgers and other "real food"). Also, there was hardly any line at for the post-race massage, so Matt and I got on the list and had the best 10-minute massage possible. Greatness. I think that will really help my recovery.
Getting psyched for Sunday's Olympic-distance race!
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